Ballard Power Systems (NASDAQ:BLDP – Get Free Report) and NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG – Get Free Report) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and institutional ownership.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Ballard Power Systems and NRG Energy”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Ballard Power Systems | $99.40 million | 7.23 | -$324.24 million | ($0.30) | -7.97 |
| NRG Energy | $30.71 billion | 1.07 | $864.00 million | $3.94 | 38.77 |
Profitability
This table compares Ballard Power Systems and NRG Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Ballard Power Systems | -91.50% | -14.38% | -12.38% |
| NRG Energy | 2.81% | 109.48% | 6.55% |
Institutional and Insider Ownership
28.0% of Ballard Power Systems shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.7% of NRG Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Ballard Power Systems shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of NRG Energy shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Risk & Volatility
Ballard Power Systems has a beta of 1.78, suggesting that its stock price is 78% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, NRG Energy has a beta of 1.26, suggesting that its stock price is 26% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current ratings for Ballard Power Systems and NRG Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Ballard Power Systems | 4 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1.71 |
| NRG Energy | 1 | 3 | 9 | 1 | 2.71 |
Ballard Power Systems currently has a consensus target price of $2.41, suggesting a potential upside of 0.94%. NRG Energy has a consensus target price of $196.33, suggesting a potential upside of 28.53%. Given NRG Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe NRG Energy is more favorable than Ballard Power Systems.
Summary
NRG Energy beats Ballard Power Systems on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Ballard Power Systems
Ballard Power Systems Inc. engages in the design, development, manufacture, sale, and service of proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cell products. The company offers its products for power product comprising for bus, truck, rail, marine, stationary, and emerging market, such as material handling, off-road, and other applications. It also engages in the delivery of services, including technology solutions, after sales services, and training; and provision of engineering services, product and systems integration services, and related technology transfer for a variety of PEM fuel cell applications. It operates in the United States, Germany, Canada, China, Poland, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, France, Denmark, Belgium, India, Taiwan, Spain, Norway, Australia, Japan, and internationally. The company has a strategic alliance with Linamar Corporation for the co-development and sale of fuel cell powertrains and components for class 1 and 2 vehicles in North America and Europe. Ballard Power Systems Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Burnaby, Canada.
About NRG Energy
NRG Energy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy and home services company in the United States and Canada. It operates through Texas; East; West/Services/Other; Vivint Smart Home; and Corporate Activities segments. The company produces and sells electricity generated using coal, oil, solar, and battery storage; natural gas; and a cloud-based home platform, including hardware, software, sales, installation, customer service, technical support, and professional monitoring solutions. It offers retail electricity and energy management, line and surge protection products, HVAC installation, repair and maintenance, home protection products, carbon offsets, back-up power stations, portable power, portable solar, and portable lighting; retail services comprising demand response, commodity sales, energy efficiency, and energy management solutions; and system power, distributed generation, renewable and low-carbon products, carbon management and specialty services, backup generation, storage and distributed solar, and energy advisory services. In addition, the company trades in power, natural gas, and related commodities; environmental products; weather products; and financial products, including forwards, futures, options, and swaps. It offers its products and services under the NRG, Reliant, Direct Energy, Green Mountain Energy, and Vivint. It serves residential, commercial, government, industrial, and wholesale customers. NRG Energy, Inc. was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
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