PPL (NYSE:PPL) & DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE) Head to Head Comparison

PPL (NYSE:PPL) and DTE Energy (NYSE:DTE) are both large-cap utilities companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares PPL and DTE Energy”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PPL	$9.04 billion	3.13	$1.18 billion	$1.60	23.54
DTE Energy	$15.81 billion	1.90	$1.46 billion	$7.02	20.59

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

Risk & Volatility

PPL has a beta of 0.7, suggesting that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, DTE Energy has a beta of 0.47, suggesting that its stock price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

PPL pays an annual dividend of $1.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. DTE Energy pays an annual dividend of $4.66 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. PPL pays out 71.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. DTE Energy pays out 66.4% 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. PPL has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years and DTE Energy has increased its dividend for 16 consecutive years. DTE Energy is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for PPL and DTE Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PPL	0	3	9	1	2.85
DTE Energy	0	4	9	1	2.79

PPL currently has a consensus price target of $41.17, indicating a potential upside of 9.32%. DTE Energy has a consensus price target of $152.17, indicating a potential upside of 5.29%. Given PPL’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe PPL is more favorable than DTE Energy.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

77.0% of PPL shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 76.1% of DTE Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of PPL shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of DTE Energy shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares PPL and DTE Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PPL	13.06%	9.29%	3.10%
DTE Energy	9.24%	12.72%	2.97%

About PPL

PPL Corporation, an energy company, focuses on providing electricity and natural gas to approximately 3.6 million customers in the United States. It operates through three segments: Kentucky Regulated, Pennsylvania Regulated, and Rhode Island Regulated. The company delivers electricity to customers in Pennsylvania, Kentucky, Virginia, and Rhode Island; delivers natural gas to customers in Kentucky and Rhode Island; and generates electricity from power plants in Kentucky. PPL Corporation was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

About DTE Energy

DTE Energy Company engages in the utility operations. The company's Electric segment generates, purchases, distributes, and sells electricity to various residential, commercial, and industrial customers in southeastern Michigan. It generates electricity through coal-fired plants, hydroelectric pumped storage, and nuclear plants, as well as wind and solar assets. This segment owns and operates distribution substations and line transformers. The company's Gas segment purchases, stores, transports, distributes, and sells natural gas to various residential, commercial, and industrial customers throughout Michigan; and sells storage and transportation capacity. Its DTE Vantage segment offers metallurgical and petroleum coke to steel and other industries; and power generation, steam production, chilled water production, and wastewater treatment services, as well as air supplies compressed air to industrial customers. Its Energy Trading segment engages in power, natural gas, and environmental marketing and trading; structured transactions; and the optimization of contracted natural gas pipeline transportation and storage positions. The company was founded in 1849 and is based in Detroit, Michigan.