Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (OTCMKTS:NPNYY) & Dorian LPG (NYSE:LPG) Head to Head Comparison

Dorian LPG (NYSE:LPG) and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (OTCMKTS:NPNYY) are both transportation companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

62.5% of Dorian LPG shares are held by institutional investors. 13.6% of Dorian LPG shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Dorian LPG pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha pays an annual dividend of $0.19 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Dorian LPG pays out 35.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha pays out 26.4% 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. Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Volatility and Risk

Dorian LPG has a beta of 0.59, meaning that its stock price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha has a beta of 0.82, meaning that its stock price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Dorian LPG and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Dorian LPG	$404.13 million	4.14	$90.17 million	$2.84	13.79
Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha	$17.00 billion	0.87	$1.51 billion	$0.72	10.02

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha has higher revenue and earnings than Dorian LPG. Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Dorian LPG, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Dorian LPG and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Dorian LPG	29.88%	11.82%	7.06%
Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha	9.44%	7.26%	4.72%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Dorian LPG and Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Dorian LPG	1	3	1	0	2.00
Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha	0	1	0	0	2.00

Dorian LPG currently has a consensus price target of $42.00, indicating a potential upside of 7.27%. Given Dorian LPG’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Dorian LPG is more favorable than Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha.

Summary

Dorian LPG beats Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Dorian LPG

Dorian LPG Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the transportation of liquefied petroleum gas through its LPG tankers worldwide. It owns and operates twenty-five very large gas carriers. The company was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.

About Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha provides various logistics services worldwide. It operates through Liner & Logistics Business, Bulk Shipping Business, and Other Business segments. The company offers liner trading services, such as container shipping, and terminal and stevedoring services for containerships, car carriers, and cruise ships; and air cargo transportation services. It also provides bulk shipping services comprising transport services for finished automobiles, heavy construction machines, and used cars; transportation services for bulk freight, including iron ore, coal, and wood chips; and transportation services for crude oil, petroleum products, chemicals, liquefied petroleum gas, liquefied natural gas, and coal. In addition, the company is involved in the upstream areas of the supply chain for oil and natural gas. Further, it operates Asuka II, a luxury cruise ship; and manages commercial and residential buildings. Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha was incorporated in 1885 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.