Comparing Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) & Enersys (NYSE:ENS)

Enersys (NYSE:ENS) and Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) are both mid-cap industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Enersys and Powell Industries, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Enersys	0	0	3	0	3.00
Powell Industries	0	0	1	1	3.50

Enersys presently has a consensus target price of $118.33, indicating a potential upside of 15.79%. Powell Industries has a consensus target price of $312.00, indicating a potential upside of 18.28%. Given Powell Industries’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Powell Industries is more favorable than Enersys.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Enersys and Powell Industries”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Enersys	$3.62 billion	1.06	$363.73 million	$8.76	11.67
Powell Industries	$1.01 billion	3.14	$149.85 million	$14.40	18.32

Enersys has higher revenue and earnings than Powell Industries. Enersys is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Powell Industries, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Enersys has a beta of 1.09, suggesting that its stock price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Powell Industries has a beta of 0.85, suggesting that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

94.9% of Enersys shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.8% of Powell Industries shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Enersys shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.2% of Powell Industries shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Enersys pays an annual dividend of $0.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Powell Industries pays an annual dividend of $1.07 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Enersys pays out 11.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Powell Industries pays out 7.4% 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. Enersys has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years and Powell Industries has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares Enersys and Powell Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Enersys	9.60%	21.99%	10.24%
Powell Industries	16.22%	33.16%	18.23%

Summary

Powell Industries beats Enersys on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Enersys

EnerSys engages in the provision of stored energy solutions for industrial applications worldwide. It operates in four segments: Energy Systems, Motive Power, Specialty, and New Ventures. The Energy Systems segment offers uninterruptible power systems (UPS) applications for computer and computer-controlled systems, as well as telecommunications systems; switchgear and electrical control systems used in industrial facilities and electric utilities, large-scale energy storage, and energy pipelines; integrated power solutions and services to broadband, telecom, data center, and renewable and industrial customers; and thermally managed cabinets and enclosures for electronic equipment and batteries. The Motive Power segment provides power solutions for electric industrial forklifts used in manufacturing, warehousing, and other material handling applications, as well as automated guided vehicles, mining equipment, and diesel locomotive starting and other rail equipment. The Specialty offers batteries for starting, lighting, and ignition applications in automotive and over-the-road trucks; and energy solutions for satellites, spacecraft, commercial aircraft, military land vehicles, aircraft, submarines, ships, and other tactical vehicles, as well as medical devices and equipment. The New Venture segment provides energy storage and management systems for demand charge reduction, utility back-up power, and dynamic fast charging for electric vehicles. The company also offers battery chargers, power equipment, battery accessories, and outdoor cabinet enclosures, as well as related after-market and customer-support services for industrial batteries. It sells its products through a network of distributors, independent representatives, and internal sales forces. The company was formerly known as Yuasa, Inc. and changed its name to EnerSys in January 2001. EnerSys was founded in 1991 and is headquartered in Reading, Pennsylvania.

About Powell Industries

Powell Industries, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and services custom-engineered equipment and systems. The company’s principal products include integrated power control room substations, custom-engineered modules, electrical houses, medium-voltage circuit breakers, monitoring and control communications systems, motor control centers, switches, and bus duct systems, as well as traditional and arc-resistant distribution switchgears and control gears. Its products have application in voltages ranging from 480 volts to 38,000 volts. The company also provide field service inspection, installation, commissioning, modification and repair, spare parts, retrofit and retrofill components for existing systems, and replacement circuit breakers for switchgear. It serves onshore and offshore production, liquefied natural gas facilities and terminals, pipelines, refineries, and petrochemical plants, as well as electric utility, light rail traction power, mining and metals, pulp and paper, data centers and other municipal, commercial, and industrial markets. The company has operations in the United States, Canada, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Mexico, and Central and South America. Powell Industries, Inc. was founded in 1947 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.