Evergy (NYSE:EVRG) and NorthWestern (NYSE:NWE) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.
Volatility and Risk
Evergy has a beta of 0.12, indicating that its stock price is 88% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, NorthWestern has a beta of 0.15, indicating that its stock price is 85% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Evergy and NorthWestern’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Evergy | $4.28 billion | 3.40 | $535.80 million | $2.67 | 23.91 |
| NorthWestern | $1.19 billion | 3.06 | $196.96 million | $3.39 | 21.30 |
Evergy has higher revenue and earnings than NorthWestern. NorthWestern is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Evergy, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Evergy and NorthWestern’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Evergy | 11.97% | 6.96% | 2.48% |
| NorthWestern | 16.84% | 9.57% | 3.32% |
Dividends
Evergy pays an annual dividend of $2.02 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. NorthWestern pays an annual dividend of $2.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Evergy pays out 75.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. NorthWestern pays out 67.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. NorthWestern has raised its dividend for 10 consecutive years. NorthWestern is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Evergy and NorthWestern, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Evergy | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2.00 |
| NorthWestern | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1.60 |
Evergy currently has a consensus target price of $65.33, suggesting a potential upside of 2.32%. NorthWestern has a consensus target price of $67.60, suggesting a potential downside of 6.37%. Given Evergy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Evergy is more favorable than NorthWestern.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
86.4% of Evergy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.0% of NorthWestern shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of Evergy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of NorthWestern shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
NorthWestern beats Evergy on 10 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.
Evergy Company Profile
Westar Energy, Inc. engages in the generation, transmission and distribution of electricity in Kansas. It provides electricity to residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the cities of Topeka, Lawrence, Manhattan, Salina, and Hutchinson. The company was founded in 1924 and is headquartered in Topeka, KS.
NorthWestern Company Profile
NorthWestern Corporation, doing business as NorthWestern Energy, provides electricity and natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The company operates through Electric Operations and Natural Gas Operations segments. It generates, transmits, and distributes electricity; and produces, stores, transmits, and distributes natural gas, as well as owns municipal franchises to provide natural gas service in the communities. The company's electric transmission and distribution network consists of approximately 24,765 miles of overhead and underground transmission and distribution lines, as well as 386 transmission and distribution substations in Montana; and transmission and distribution network comprises of approximately 3,572 miles of overhead and underground transmission and distribution lines, as well as 128 substations in South Dakota. Its natural gas transmission system consists of approximately 2,100 miles of pipeline. The company serves approximately 726,400 customers in Montana, South Dakota, and Nebraska, the United States. NorthWestern Corporation was founded in 1923 and is based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
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