Head-To-Head Comparison: Suez (OTCMKTS:SZEVY) versus York Water (NASDAQ:YORW)

York Water (NASDAQ:YORW) and Suez (OTCMKTS:SZEVY) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership and dividends.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares York Water and Suez”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
York Water	$77.49 million	7.16	$20.06 million	$1.61	21.24
Suez	$20.18 billion	0.40	$393.90 million	$0.32	20.30

Suez has higher revenue and earnings than York Water. Suez is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than York Water, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

York Water has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Suez has a beta of 0.9, indicating that its stock price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for York Water and Suez, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
York Water	0	1	0	0	2.00
Suez	0	0	0	0	0.00

York Water currently has a consensus target price of $31.00, indicating a potential downside of 9.33%. Given York Water’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe York Water is more favorable than Suez.

Dividends

York Water pays an annual dividend of $0.91 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. Suez pays an annual dividend of $0.17 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. York Water pays out 56.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Suez pays out 53.1% 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. York Water has increased its dividend for 27 consecutive years. York Water is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

49.9% of York Water shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.1% of Suez shares are held by institutional investors. 0.5% of York Water shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares York Water and Suez’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
York Water	28.53%	9.38%	3.47%
Suez	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

York Water beats Suez on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About York Water

The York Water Company impounds, purifies, and distributes drinking water. It owns and operates three wastewater collection systems; ten wastewater collection and treatment systems; and two reservoirs, including Lake Williams and Lake Redman, which hold approximately 2.2 billion gallons of water. The company also operates a 15-mile pipeline from the Susquehanna River to Lake Redman; and owns satellite groundwater systems in York, Adams, and Lancaster Counties, as well as two impounding dams on primary system located in York and Springfield Townships. It serves customers in the fixtures and furniture, electrical machinery, food products, paper, ordnance units, textile products, air conditioning systems, laundry detergents, barbells, and motorcycle industries in 56 municipalities within four counties in south-central Pennsylvania. The York Water Company was incorporated in 1816 and is based in York, Pennsylvania.

About Suez

Suez SA, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the water and waste cycle management business in France, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through five segments: Water Europe, Recycling and Recovery Europe, International, Water Technologies & Solutions, and Other. It provides water distribution and treatment services to individuals, local authorities, and industrial clients; and waste collection and treatment services, including collection, sorting, recycling, composting, energy recovery, and landfilling for non-hazardous and hazardous waste for local authorities and industrial clients. The company also offers water network management services; technical assistance, operation, cleaning, and maintenance services; and spare parts, refurbishment, and associated services, as well as designs and operates storage facilities for hazardous and non-hazardous residual waste. In addition, it provides resource management consulting services; engineering and construction contracts and other services; and digital technology solutions for resource and asset protection, as well as deconstructs industrial sites in the end-of-life phase and decontaminates soil and water tables. Additionally, the company generates waste wood biomass energy, as well as engages in plastic recycling activities. It serves food and beverage, chemical and pharmaceutical, construction, mining and metal, oil and gas, power, pulp and paper, electronic and electronic products, leisure, and healthcare industries, as well as automotive, transport, and aeronautic sectors. Suez SA was founded in 1858 and is headquartered in Paris, France.