Critical Contrast: MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) versus Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) (NYSE:ELP)

MGE Energy (NASDAQ:MGEE) and Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) (NYSE:ELP) are both mid-cap utilities companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership and risk.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

52.6% of MGE Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.8% of Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of MGE Energy shares are held by company 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.

Volatility & Risk

MGE Energy has a beta of 0.83, meaning that its stock price is 17% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) has a beta of 0.76, meaning that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for MGE Energy and Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL), as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
MGE Energy	1	2	0	0	1.67
Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL)	0	1	0	0	2.00

MGE Energy presently has a consensus price target of $79.00, suggesting a potential upside of 0.83%. Given MGE Energy’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe MGE Energy is more favorable than Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL).

Dividends

MGE Energy pays an annual dividend of $1.90 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) pays an annual dividend of $0.25 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.7%. MGE Energy pays out 51.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) pays out 208.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. MGE Energy has increased its dividend for 49 consecutive years.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares MGE Energy and Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL)”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
MGE Energy	$676.94 million	4.23	$120.57 million	$3.69	21.23
Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL)	$4.20 billion	1.32	$520.91 million	$0.12	77.46

Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) has higher revenue and earnings than MGE Energy. MGE Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL), indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares MGE Energy and Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL)’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
MGE Energy	18.55%	10.65%	4.67%
Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL)	8.66%	7.77%	3.34%

Summary

MGE Energy beats Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL) on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About MGE Energy

MGE Energy, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a public utility holding company primarily in the United States. It operates through Regulated Electric Utility Operations; Regulated Gas Utility Operations; Nonregulated Energy Operations; Transmission Investments; and All Other segments. The company generates, purchases, and distributes electricity and natural gas in Wisconsin and Iowa; owns and leases electric generating capacity; and plans, constructs, operates, maintains, and expands transmission facilities to provide transmission power services. It generates electricity from coal-fired, gas-fired, and renewable energy sources. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned and operated 835 miles of overhead electric distribution lines; 1,330 miles of underground electric distribution cables; 49 substations with an installed capacity of 1.2 million kVA; and gas facilities, including 3,066 miles of distribution mains, as well as supplied electric service to approximately 163,000 customers. MGE Energy, Inc. founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Madison, Wisconsin.

About Companhia Paranaense de Energia (COPEL)

Companhia Paranaense de Energia – COPEL engages in the generation, transformation, distribution, and sale of electricity to industrial, residential, commercial, rural, and other customers in Brazil. The company operates through Power Generation and Transmission, Power Distribution, Power Sale, and Gas segments. It is also involved in the piped natural gas distribution. The company operates hydroelectric, wind, and thermoelectric plants; and owns and operates transmission and distribution lines. It holds concessions to distribute electricity in municipalities in the State of Paraná and in the municipality of Porto União in the State of Santa Catarina. Companhia Paranaense de Energia COPEL was founded in 1954 and is headquartered in Curitiba, Brazil.Companhia Paranaense de Energia – COPEL Operates as a subsidiary of Governo Do Estado Do Parana.