Reviewing Quanta Services (NYSE:PWR) and Alfa Laval (OTCMKTS:ALFVY)

Quanta Services (NYSE:PWR) and Alfa Laval (OTCMKTS:ALFVY) are both large-cap construction companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, earnings and risk.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

90.5% of Quanta Services shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.0% of Alfa Laval shares are held by institutional investors. 0.6% of Quanta Services shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Quanta Services and Alfa Laval’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Quanta Services	3.67%	18.64%	6.88%
Alfa Laval	11.63%	18.60%	8.28%

Dividends

Quanta Services pays an annual dividend of $0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.1%. Alfa Laval pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Quanta Services pays out 6.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Alfa Laval pays out 28.4% 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. Quanta Services has increased its dividend for 6 consecutive years.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for Quanta Services and Alfa Laval, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Quanta Services	0	9	17	0	2.65
Alfa Laval	1	2	4	0	2.43

Quanta Services currently has a consensus target price of $745.55, suggesting a potential upside of 19.09%. Given Quanta Services’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Quanta Services is more favorable than Alfa Laval.

Risk and Volatility

Quanta Services has a beta of 1.21, suggesting that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Alfa Laval has a beta of 1.14, suggesting that its stock price is 14% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Quanta Services and Alfa Laval”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Quanta Services	$28.48 billion	3.30	$1.03 billion	$7.29	85.88
Alfa Laval	$7.12 billion	3.41	$845.40 million	$2.11	27.87

Quanta Services has higher revenue and earnings than Alfa Laval. Alfa Laval is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Quanta Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Quanta Services beats Alfa Laval on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Quanta Services

Quanta Services, Inc. provides infrastructure solutions for the electric and gas utility, renewable energy, communications, and pipeline and energy industries in the United States, Canada, Australia, and internationally. The company’s Electric Power Infrastructure Solutions segment engages in the design, procurement, construction, upgrade, repair, and maintenance of electric power transmission and distribution infrastructure and substation facilities; installation, maintenance, and upgrade of electric power infrastructure projects; installation of smart grid technologies on electric power networks; and design, installation, maintenance, and repair of commercial and industrial wirings. This segment also offers aviation services; emergency restoration services; and other engineering and technical services; design and construction solutions to wireline and wireless communications, cable multi-system operators, and other customers; and training for electric workers, as well as training for the gas distribution and communications industries. The company’s Renewable Energy Infrastructure Solutions segment is involved in engineering, procurement, construction, repair, and maintenance of wind, solar, and hydropower generation facilities, as well as battery storage facilities; and provision of engineering and construction services for substations and switchyards, transmission, and other electrical infrastructures. The company’s Underground Utility and Infrastructure Solutions segment offers design, engineering, procurement, construction, upgrade, repair, and maintenance services for natural gas systems for gas utility customers; fabrication services for pipeline support systems and structures and facilities; and engineering and construction services for pipeline and storage systems, and compressor and pump stations. The company was formerly known as Fabal Construction, Inc. and changed its name to Quanta Services, Inc. in November 1997. The company was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Alfa Laval

Alfa Laval Corporate AB provides heat transfer, separation, and fluid handling products and solutions worldwide. It operates in three divisions: Energy, Food & Water, and Marine. The company offers oil/gas-fired steam and composite steam boilers, exhaust gas economizer, and ballast water treatment systems, and exhaust gas cleaning products. It also provides sensing and control, cleaning validation, condition monitoring, agitators, tank, powder mixers, fittings, and tubes, as well as wall mounted cleaning nozzles, rotary jet and heads; and tank accessories and covers. In addition, the company offers centrifugal, rotary lobe, three screw, twin screw, and circumferential piston pumps. Further, it provides butterfly, control and check, double seal, diaphragm, double seat, regulating, safety, sampling, shutter, single seat, and ball valves. Additionally, the company offers heat exchanger, tube-in-tube heat exchangers, and process shell-and-tube heat exchangers. Furthermore, it provides finned tube air heat, scraped surface heat exchangers, and various plate heat exchangers, wet surface, and HYAC hybrid air coolers. The company also offers decanters and separator related products. It serves energy, utilities, home, personal care, food, dairy, beverage, marine, transportation, pharmaceutical, biotech, water, and wastewater industries. Alfa Laval Corporate AB was founded in 1883 and is headquartered in Lund, Sweden.