Comparing Electricité de France (OTCMKTS:ECIFF) and E.On (OTCMKTS:EONGY)

Electricité de France (OTCMKTS:ECIFF) and E.On (OTCMKTS:EONGY) are both utilities companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, valuation and institutional ownership.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Electricité de France and E.On”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Electricité de France	N/A	N/A	N/A	$1.90	6.77
E.On	$89.03 billion	0.59	$1.96 billion	$1.50	13.43

E.On has higher revenue and earnings than Electricité de France. Electricité de France is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than E.On, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Electricité de France and E.On, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Electricité de France	0	0	0	0	0.00
E.On	0	6	2	0	2.25

Institutional & Insider Ownership

3.7% of Electricité de France shares are held by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Electricité de France and E.On’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Electricité de France	N/A	N/A	N/A
E.On	4.49%	11.54%	2.72%

Dividends

Electricité de France pays an annual dividend of $0.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.3%. E.On pays an annual dividend of $0.49 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Electricité de France pays out 35.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. E.On pays out 32.7% 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.

Summary

E.On beats Electricité de France on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Electricité de France

Electricité de France S.A., an integrated energy company, engages in the power generation, transmission, distribution, supply, and trading activities in France, the United Kingdom, Italy, and internationally. The company generates electricity through nuclear, fossil fuel, hydro, solar, wind, biomass, biogas, thermal, and cogeneration plants. It also manages low and medium-voltage public electricity distribution networks; operates, maintains, and develops high-voltage and very-high-voltage electricity transmission networks; and services and produces equipment and fuel for nuclear reactors. In addition, the company is involved in commodity trading activities; and the provision of energy services, including district heating services, thermal energy services, etc. It serves approximately 38.5 million customers, including small businesses, local authorities, and industrial and residential customers. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Paris, France.

About E.On

E.ON SE operates as an energy company in Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden, the Netherlands, rest of Europe, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Energy Networks and Customer Solutions. The Energy Networks segment operates power and gas distribution networks, as well as provides maintenance, repairs, and related services. The Customer Solutions segment supplies power, gas, and heat, as well as with products and services that enhance energy efficiency to residential, small and medium-sized enterprises, large commercial and industrial, sales partners, and public entities. Additionally, it provides SmartSim, a software solution that allows renewable gases to be fed into gas grids; gas quality tracking solutions; GasPro, a mobile gas sample collector; metering solutions; and GasCalc, a software that calculates natural gases, LNG, and biogases properties. The company was founded in 1923 and is headquartered in Essen, Germany.