Analyzing Tsakos Energy Navigation (NYSE:TEN) and Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL)

Global Ship Lease (NYSE:GSL) and Tsakos Energy Navigation (NYSE:TEN) are both small-cap transportation companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Global Ship Lease and Tsakos Energy Navigation’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Global Ship Lease	54.33%	22.35%	13.99%
Tsakos Energy Navigation	20.15%	26.29%	12.40%

Dividends

Global Ship Lease pays an annual dividend of $2.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.6%. Tsakos Energy Navigation pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. Global Ship Lease pays out 21.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Tsakos Energy Navigation pays out 22.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Global Ship Lease has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Global Ship Lease is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Global Ship Lease and Tsakos Energy Navigation”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Global Ship Lease	$766.45 million	1.78	$416.45 million	$11.39	3.33
Tsakos Energy Navigation	$798.69 million	1.41	$160.90 million	$4.46	8.40

Global Ship Lease has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Tsakos Energy Navigation. Global Ship Lease is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Tsakos Energy Navigation, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Global Ship Lease has a beta of 0.88, suggesting that its share price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Tsakos Energy Navigation has a beta of -0.27, suggesting that its share price is 127% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

50.1% of Global Ship Lease shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 19.2% of Tsakos Energy Navigation shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of Tsakos Energy Navigation shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Global Ship Lease and Tsakos Energy Navigation, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Global Ship Lease	1	1	3	0	2.40
Tsakos Energy Navigation	0	3	1	0	2.25

Global Ship Lease currently has a consensus price target of $38.33, suggesting a potential upside of 0.92%. Tsakos Energy Navigation has a consensus price target of $29.50, suggesting a potential downside of 21.30%. Given Global Ship Lease’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Global Ship Lease is more favorable than Tsakos Energy Navigation.

Summary

Global Ship Lease beats Tsakos Energy Navigation on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Global Ship Lease

Global Ship Lease, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in owning and chartering of containerships under fixed-rate charters to container shipping companies worldwide. As of March 11, 2024, it owned 68 mid-sized and smaller containerships, ranging from 2,207 to 11,040 twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU), with an aggregate capacity of 375,406 TEU. The company was founded in 2007 and is based in Athens, Greece.

About Tsakos Energy Navigation

Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd. engages in the provision of seaborne crude oil and petroleum product transportation services. Its activities include the operation of crude tankers, product tankers, and liquefied natural gas carriers. The company was founded by Nikolas P. Tsakos and Michael Gordon Jolliffee in July 1993 and is headquartered in Athens, Greece.