Reviewing Telecom Argentina (OTCMKTS:TCMFF) and PLDT (NYSE:PHI)

PLDT (NYSE:PHI) and Telecom Argentina (OTCMKTS:TCMFF) are both communication services companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation and earnings.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

2.3% of PLDT shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.1% of Telecom Argentina shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of PLDT shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for PLDT and Telecom Argentina, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PLDT	0	5	0	0	2.00
Telecom Argentina	0	0	0	0	0.00

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares PLDT and Telecom Argentina”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PLDT	$3.80 billion	1.10	$498.72 million	$2.22	8.73
Telecom Argentina	N/A	N/A	N/A	$3.63	0.30

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

Profitability

This table compares PLDT and Telecom Argentina’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PLDT	12.81%	26.76%	5.36%
Telecom Argentina	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

PLDT pays an annual dividend of $1.11 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.7%. Telecom Argentina pays an annual dividend of $2.27 per share and has a dividend yield of 211.2%. PLDT pays out 50.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Telecom Argentina pays out 62.5% 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.

Summary

PLDT beats Telecom Argentina on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PLDT

PLDT Inc. provides telecommunications and digital services in the Philippines. The company operates through three segments: Wireless, Fixed Line, and Others. It offers cellular mobile, Internet broadband distribution, operations support, software development, and satellite information and messaging services; and sells Wi-Fi access equipment. The company also provides fixed line telecommunications services; business infrastructure and solutions; intelligent data processing and implementation, and data analytics insight generation services; and information and communications infrastructure for Internet-based services, e-commerce, customer relationship management, and information technology (IT) related services. In addition, it offers managed IT outsourcing, Internet-based purchasing, IT consulting and professional, and bills printing and other related value-added services; distributes Filipino channels and content services; and provides full-services customer rewards and loyalty programs. Further, the company engages in the sale of mobile handsets, broadband data routers, tablets, and accessories; and cross-border digital platforms. Additionally, it provides gaming support services; mobile internet and broadband, and data services; content provider and develops mobile application; IT solution; data and network; domestic leased lines; alternative messaging solutions, such as over-the-top services, social media, and messenger application; inbound roaming and other services; mobile prepaid and postpaid services; and fixed wireless broadband services. The company was formerly known as Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company and changed its name to PLDT Inc. in July 2016. PLDT Inc. was incorporated in 1928 and is headquartered in Makati City, the Philippines.

About Telecom Argentina

Telecom Argentina S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides telecommunications services. The company offers mobile telecommunications services, including voice communications, high-speed mobile Internet content and applications download, online streaming, and other services; and sells mobile communication devices, such as handsets, Modems MiFi and wingles, and smart watches. It also internet connectivity products, including virtual private network services, traditional Internet protocol links, and other products; and programming and other cable television services. In addition, the company offers telephone services, including local, domestic, and international long-distance telephone services, as well as public telephone services; and other related supplementary services, such as call waiting, call forwarding, conference calls, caller ID, voice mail, itemized billing, and maintenance services. Further, it provides Infrastructure, interconnection, datacenter, Internet, value added, and international long-distance services; and data services, including data transmission, virtual private networks, symmetric Internet access, national and international signal transport, and videoconferencing services; Personal Pay, a digital wallet service; and management and administration services. The company was formerly known as Cablevisión S.A. and changed its name to Telecom Argentina S.A. in January 2018. Telecom Argentina S.A. was founded in 1979 and is based in Buenos Aires, Argentina.