AES (NYSE:AES – Get Free Report) and AusNet Services (OTCMKTS:SAUNF – Get Free Report) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, analyst recommendations and risk.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
94.5% of AES shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of AES shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for AES and AusNet Services, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| AES | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2.50 |
| AusNet Services | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares AES and AusNet Services’ top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| AES | $12.62 billion | 0.66 | -$546.00 million | ($0.61) | -20.41 |
| AusNet Services | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
AusNet Services has lower revenue, but higher earnings than AES.
Profitability
This table compares AES and AusNet Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| AES | -2.70% | 36.65% | 3.70% |
| AusNet Services | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Summary
AES beats AusNet Services on 7 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.
About AES
The AES Corporation operates as a diversified power generation and utility company. It owns and/or operates power plants to generate and sell power to customers, such as utilities, industrial users, and other intermediaries. The company also owns and/or operates utilities to generate or purchase, distribute, transmit, and sell electricity to end-user customers in the residential, commercial, industrial, and governmental sectors; and generates and sells electricity on the wholesale market. It uses a range of fuels and technologies to generate electricity, including coal, gas, hydro, wind, solar, and biomass; and renewables, such as energy storage and landfill gas. The company owns and/or operates a generation portfolio of approximately 32,326 megawatts. It has operations in the United States, Puerto Rico, El Salvador, Chile, Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, Europe, and Asia. The company was formerly known as Applied Energy Services, Inc. and changed its name to The AES Corporation in April 2000. The AES Corporation was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.
About AusNet Services
AusNet Services Ltd. engages in the production and distribution of electricity and gas. It operates through the following segments: Electricity Distribution, Gas Distribution, Electricity Transmission, and Growth and Future Networks. The Electricity Distribution segment carries electricity from the high voltage transmission network to end users. The Gas Distribution segment handles the natural gas to commercial and residential end users. The Electricity Transmission segment owns and manages the vast majority of the electricity transmission network in Victoria. The Growth and Future Networks segment provides contracted infrastructure asset and energy services, as well as a range of asset and utility services to support the management of electricity, gas, and water networks. The company was founded in June 2005 and is headquartered in Southbank, Australia.
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