Head-To-Head Comparison: Keppel (OTCMKTS:KPELY) vs. Frontline (NYSE:FRO)

Keppel (OTCMKTS:KPELY) and Frontline (NYSE:FRO) are both transportation companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings and risk.

Dividends

Keppel pays an annual dividend of $0.46 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Frontline pays an annual dividend of $1.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.2%. Frontline pays out 134.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

22.7% of Frontline shares are owned by institutional investors. 48.1% of Frontline shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Keppel and Frontline’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Keppel	N/A	N/A	N/A
Frontline	12.94%	10.27%	3.90%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Keppel and Frontline, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Keppel	0	0	1	0	3.00
Frontline	1	1	3	0	2.40

Frontline has a consensus target price of $21.87, indicating a potential downside of 6.46%. Given Frontline’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Frontline is more favorable than Keppel.

Risk & Volatility

Keppel has a beta of 0.51, meaning that its share price is 49% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Frontline has a beta of 0.2, meaning that its share price is 80% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Keppel and Frontline”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Keppel	$4.94 billion	2.50	$712.27 million	N/A	N/A
Frontline	$1.82 billion	2.85	$495.58 million	$1.07	21.85

Keppel has higher revenue and earnings than Frontline.

Summary

Frontline beats Keppel on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Keppel

Keppel Ltd., an investment holding company, engages in the infrastructure, real estate, and connectivity business in Singapore, China, Hong Kong, other far East and ASEAN countries, and internationally. The company operates through, Infrastructure, Real Estate, and Connectivity. It manages private funds and listed real estate investment and business trusts, in areas of infrastructure, real estate, and connectivity; energy and environmental solutions and services, including commercial power generation, renewables, environmental engineering and construction, and infrastructure; operation and maintenance; property development and investment; master development; sustainable and innovative urban space solutions; and system integration solutions and services. The company develops and operates data centres; telecommunication services; sells telecommunication and information technology equipment; procures, installs, operates, and maintenance of solar generation facilities; and operates golf club. In addition, it engages electricity, energy, and power supply; general wholesale trading; purchase and sells gaseous fuels; develops of district heating and cooling system; environmental, technologies, and engineering works; solid waste treatment; design and constructs waste-to-energy and desalination plants; commercial power generation; renewable energy generation; and owns and operates hotel. Further, the company offers property investment and development; real estate construction; trades communication systems and accessories; operates telecommunication network; IT consulting and outsourcing; distributes of IT products; colocation services; fixed and other related telecommunication services; ICT solutions; management services; fund management; investment advisory; and real estate investment trust. The company was formerly known as Keppel Corporation and changed its name to Keppel Ltd. in January 2024. Keppel Ltd. Limited was incorporated in 1968 and is headquartered in Singapore.

About Frontline

Frontline plc, a shipping company, engages in the seaborne transportation of crude oil and oil products worldwide. It owns and operates oil and product tankers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated a fleet of 70 vessels. It is also involved in the charter, purchase, and sale of vessels. The company was founded in 1985 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.