PG&E (PCG) Competitors

Sempra (NYSE:SRE) and PG&E (NYSE:PCG) are both large-cap utilities companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, community ranking, media sentiment and dividends.

Which has better valuation & earnings, SRE or PCG?

Sempra has higher earnings, but lower revenue than PG&E. PG&E is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Sempra, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Sempra	$16.72B	3.23	$3.08B	$4.54	18.77
PG&E	$24.43B	1.82	$2.26B	$1.28	13.30

Does the media refer more to SRE or PCG?

In the previous week, PG&E had 10 more articles in the media than Sempra. MarketBeat recorded 25 mentions for PG&E and 15 mentions for Sempra. Sempra's average media sentiment score of 0.82 beat PG&E's score of 0.46 indicating that Sempra is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Sempra	10 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
PG&E	8 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	10 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Is SRE or PCG more profitable?

Sempra has a net margin of 22.63% compared to PG&E's net margin of 11.11%. PG&E's return on equity of 12.51% beat Sempra's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sempra	22.63%	8.06%	3.04%
PG&E	11.11%	12.51%	2.54%

Does the MarketBeat Community prefer SRE or PCG?

PG&E received 392 more outperform votes than Sempra when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 63.48% of users gave PG&E an outperform vote while only 60.50% of users gave Sempra an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Sempra	Outperform Votes 484 60.50%	Underperform Votes 316 39.50%
PG&E	Outperform Votes 876 63.48%	Underperform Votes 504 36.52%

Which has more risk & volatility, SRE or PCG?

Sempra has a beta of 0.78, meaning that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PG&E has a beta of 0.98, meaning that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is SRE or PCG a better dividend stock?

Sempra pays an annual dividend of $2.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. PG&E pays an annual dividend of $0.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. Sempra pays out 54.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. PG&E pays out 7.8% 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. Sempra has raised its dividend for 21 consecutive years. Sempra is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do analysts recommend SRE or PCG?

Sempra presently has a consensus target price of $91.60, indicating a potential upside of 7.47%. PG&E has a consensus target price of $22.64, indicating a potential upside of 33.00%. Given PG&E's higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe PG&E is more favorable than Sempra.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sempra	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	10 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
PG&E	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	10 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.91

Do institutionals and insiders have more ownership in SRE or PCG?

89.7% of Sempra shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.6% of PG&E shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Sempra shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of PG&E shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Sempra beats PG&E on 12 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.