Head to Head Comparison: Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. (OTCMKTS:TKGSY) & Spire (NYSE:SR)

Spire (NYSE:SR) and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. (OTCMKTS:TKGSY) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends and risk.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Spire and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd., as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Spire	0	5	5	2	2.75
Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.	0	0	0	0	0.00

Spire presently has a consensus price target of $94.00, indicating a potential upside of 16.09%. Given Spire’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Spire is more favorable than Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd..

Insider and Institutional Ownership

87.4% of Spire shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.1% of Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. shares are held by institutional investors. 2.3% of Spire shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Spire and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Spire	21.48%	8.65%	2.21%
Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Spire pays an annual dividend of $3.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. pays an annual dividend of $0.22 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Spire pays out 36.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. pays out 0.1% 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. Spire has raised its dividend for 22 consecutive years. Spire is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Spire and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Spire	$2.67 billion	1.79	$271.70 million	$8.97	9.03
Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.	N/A	N/A	N/A	$197.62	0.09

Spire has higher revenue and earnings than Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.. Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Spire, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Spire beats Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Spire

Spire Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the purchase, retail distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential, commercial, industrial, and other end-users of natural gas in the United States. The company operates through three segments: Gas Utility, Gas Marketing, and Midstream. It is also involved in the marketing of natural gas and related services; and transportation and storage of natural gas. In addition, the company engages in the operation of propane through its propane pipeline, risk management, and other activities. The company was formerly known as The Laclede Group, Inc. and changed its name to Spire Inc. in April 2016. Spire Inc. was founded in 1857 and is based in Saint Louis, Missouri.

About Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.

Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. engages in the production, supply, and sale of city gas, and LNG in Japan. The company offers engineering solutions; gas construction; and gas pipelines services, as well as engages in gas appliances business. It is also involved in fuel procurement, power generation, and sales of electricity; and overseas resource development, renewable energy, and LNG infrastructure business. In addition, the company provides district heating and cooling, and energy services; and develops LNG terminals and pipes. Further, it engages in the real estate development activities; and leasing and management of land and buildings. The company was formerly known as Tokyo Gas Company and changed its name to Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. in July 1893. The company was incorporated in 1885 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.