Analyzing New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) and Italgas (OTCMKTS:ITGGF)

Italgas (OTCMKTS:ITGGF) and New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) are both utilities companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

71.0% of New Jersey Resources shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of New Jersey Resources shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Italgas and New Jersey Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Italgas	1	0	0	0	1.00
New Jersey Resources	0	3	0	0	2.00

New Jersey Resources has a consensus price target of $45.00, indicating a potential upside of 2.97%. Given New Jersey Resources’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe New Jersey Resources is more favorable than Italgas.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Italgas and New Jersey Resources’ revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Italgas	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
New Jersey Resources	$1.96 billion	2.19	$264.72 million	$2.44	17.91

New Jersey Resources has higher revenue and earnings than Italgas.

Profitability

This table compares Italgas and New Jersey Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Italgas	N/A	N/A	N/A
New Jersey Resources	13.96%	11.13%	3.46%

Summary

New Jersey Resources beats Italgas on 8 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Italgas

Italgas S.p.A., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the distribution of natural gas in Italy. It is involved in the transportation of gas to households, enterprises, etc. The company operated a distribution network of 81,309 kilometers. It also engages in metering activities; and distributes and sells water. Italgas S.p.A. was founded in 1837 and is based in Milan, Italy.

About New Jersey Resources

New Jersey Resources Corporation, an energy services holding company, distributes natural gas. The company operates through four segments: Natural Gas Distribution, Clean Energy Ventures, Energy Services, and Storage and Transportation. The Natural Gas Distribution segment offers regulated natural gas utility services to approximately 576,000 customers in Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, and Sussex counties in New Jersey; provides capacity and storage management services; and participates in the off-system sales and capacity release markets. The Clean Energy Ventures segment invests in, owns, and operates clean energy projects, including commercial and residential solar installation situated in New Jersey, Rhode Island, New York, Connecticut, Michigan, and Indiana. The Energy Services segment maintains and operates natural gas transportation and storage capacity contracts, as well as provides physical wholesale energy, retail energy and energy management services in the United States and Canada. The Storage and Transportation segment invests in invests in energy-related ventures. It provides heating, ventilation, and cooling services; sales and installation of appliances; offers solar equipment installation, and plumbing repair and installation services; and holds commercial real estate properties. The company was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Wall, New Jersey.