Telesat (NASDAQ:TSAT) vs. Uniti Group (NASDAQ:UNIT) Critical Contrast

Uniti Group (NASDAQ:UNIT) and Telesat (NASDAQ:TSAT) are both communication services companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, valuation, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Uniti Group and Telesat, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Uniti Group	0	7	1	1	2.33
Telesat	3	2	2	0	1.86

Uniti Group presently has a consensus price target of $10.92, indicating a potential upside of 11.39%. Telesat has a consensus price target of $33.50, indicating a potential downside of 30.33%. Given Uniti Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Uniti Group is more favorable than Telesat.

Profitability

This table compares Uniti Group and Telesat’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Uniti Group	28.68%	-133.07%	-4.09%
Telesat	-102.62%	-15.53%	-3.95%

Volatility & Risk

Uniti Group has a beta of 1.39, indicating that its share price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Telesat has a beta of 2.06, indicating that its share price is 106% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Uniti Group and Telesat”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Uniti Group	$2.23 billion	1.06	$1.30 billion	$2.71	3.62
Telesat	$361.65 million	1.97	-$111.19 million	($17.89)	-2.69

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

87.5% of Uniti Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.9% of Uniti Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 40.6% of Telesat shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Uniti Group beats Telesat on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Uniti Group

Uniti Group, Inc. is a real estate investment trust company, which engages in the acquisition, construction, and leasing of properties. It operates through the following business segments: Uniti Leasing, Uniti Fiber, and Corporate. The Uniti Leasing segment involves mission-critical communications assets on exclusive or shared-tenant basis, and dark fiber network. The Uniti Fiber segment includes the operation of infrastructure solutions, cell site backhauls, and dark fiber. The Corporate segment consists of office and shared service functions. The company was founded in February 2014 and is headquartered in Little Rock, AR.

About Telesat

Telesat Corporation, a satellite operator, provides mission-critical communications solutions to broadcast, enterprise, and consulting customers worldwide. The company’s satellite-based services allow direct-to-home (DTH) service providers to deliver television programming, audio, and information channels directly to customers’ homes; and enables broadcasters, cable networks, and DTH service providers to transmit television programming services. It offers value-added services that include satellite capacity, digital encoding of video channels, authorization, and uplinking and downlinking services; and occasional use services for the broadcast of video news, sports, and live event coverages. The company also provides satellite capacity and end-to-end services comprising space segment services and terrestrial facilities for enterprise connectivity, and internet and cellular backhaul; rural telephony to telecommunications carriers and network services integrators; and other satellite services. In addition, it offers direct-to-consumer broadband services; communications services for the oil and gas and mining industries; and broadband communication services to maritime and aeronautical markets comprising commercial airplanes and vessels. Further, the company operates satellite and hybrid satellite/terrestrial networks. Additionally, it provides satellite operator services; and consulting services related to space and earth segments, government studies, research and development, and satellite control services. The company offers its services primarily through a direct sales force. As of December 31, 2020, it operated a fleet of 15 in-orbit geostationary satellites and a Canadian payload on the ViaSat-1 satellite. The company was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Ottawa, Canada. Telesat Corporation is a subsidiary of Loral Space & Communications Inc.