Comparing Centuri (NYSE:CTRI) and NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG)

Centuri (NYSE:CTRI) and NRG Energy (NYSE:NRG) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation, profitability and dividends.

Risk and Volatility

Centuri has a beta of 1.07, meaning that its share price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, NRG Energy has a beta of 1.25, meaning that its share price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Centuri and NRG Energy”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Centuri	$2.98 billion	1.02	$22.40 million	$0.34	88.84
NRG Energy	$30.71 billion	0.89	$864.00 million	$0.85	152.69

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

Institutional & Insider Ownership

97.7% of NRG Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Centuri shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of NRG Energy shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Centuri and NRG Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Centuri	0.98%	5.64%	1.81%
NRG Energy	0.74%	70.67%	4.95%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Centuri and NRG Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Centuri	2	1	2	0	2.00
NRG Energy	0	4	10	1	2.80

Centuri currently has a consensus target price of $37.80, indicating a potential upside of 25.15%. NRG Energy has a consensus target price of $199.69, indicating a potential upside of 53.86%. Given NRG Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe NRG Energy is more favorable than Centuri.

Summary

NRG Energy beats Centuri on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Centuri

Centuri Holdings, Inc. operates as a utility infrastructure services company in North America. It offers gas utility services, including maintenance, repair, installation, and replacement services for natural gas local distribution utility companies with focus on the modernization of infrastructure. The company also provides electric utility services comprising design, maintenance and repair, upgrade, and expansion services for transmission and distribution infrastructure. Its customers include electric, gas, and combination utility companies, as well as serves end markets, such as renewable energy and 5G datacom. The company was founded in 1909 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona. Centuri Holdings, Inc. is a subsidiary of Southwest Gas Holdings, Inc.

About NRG Energy

NRG Energy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an energy and home services company in the United States and Canada. It operates through Texas; East; West/Services/Other; Vivint Smart Home; and Corporate Activities segments. The company produces and sells electricity generated using coal, oil, solar, and battery storage; natural gas; and a cloud-based home platform, including hardware, software, sales, installation, customer service, technical support, and professional monitoring solutions. It offers retail electricity and energy management, line and surge protection products, HVAC installation, repair and maintenance, home protection products, carbon offsets, back-up power stations, portable power, portable solar, and portable lighting; retail services comprising demand response, commodity sales, energy efficiency, and energy management solutions; and system power, distributed generation, renewable and low-carbon products, carbon management and specialty services, backup generation, storage and distributed solar, and energy advisory services. In addition, the company trades in power, natural gas, and related commodities; environmental products; weather products; and financial products, including forwards, futures, options, and swaps. It offers its products and services under the NRG, Reliant, Direct Energy, Green Mountain Energy, and Vivint. It serves residential, commercial, government, industrial, and wholesale customers. NRG Energy, Inc. was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.