Head to Head Analysis: Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) vs. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners (NYSE:BIP)

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners (NYSE:BIP) and Algonquin Power & Utilities (NYSE:AQN) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Dividends

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners pays an annual dividend of $1.82 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Algonquin Power & Utilities pays an annual dividend of $0.26 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners pays out 293.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Algonquin Power & Utilities pays out 136.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners has raised its dividend for 18 consecutive years. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

57.9% of Brookfield Infrastructure Partners shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.3% of Algonquin Power & Utilities shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of Algonquin Power & Utilities shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Brookfield Infrastructure Partners and Algonquin Power & Utilities’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners	3.51%	2.63%	0.71%
Algonquin Power & Utilities	5.77%	5.16%	1.79%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Brookfield Infrastructure Partners and Algonquin Power & Utilities”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners	$23.10 billion	0.73	$771.00 million	$0.62	59.42
Algonquin Power & Utilities	$2.43 billion	1.68	$180.80 million	$0.19	27.92

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners has higher revenue and earnings than Algonquin Power & Utilities. Algonquin Power & Utilities is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Brookfield Infrastructure Partners, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Brookfield Infrastructure Partners and Algonquin Power & Utilities, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Brookfield Infrastructure Partners	0	3	8	0	2.73
Algonquin Power & Utilities	0	6	6	0	2.50

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners currently has a consensus target price of $45.33, indicating a potential upside of 23.05%. Algonquin Power & Utilities has a consensus target price of $6.72, indicating a potential upside of 26.77%. Given Algonquin Power & Utilities’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Algonquin Power & Utilities is more favorable than Brookfield Infrastructure Partners.

Volatility & Risk

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners has a beta of 1.03, suggesting that its share price is 3% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Algonquin Power & Utilities has a beta of 0.7, suggesting that its share price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners beats Algonquin Power & Utilities on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Brookfield Infrastructure Partners

Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. owns and operates utilities, transport, midstream, and data businesses in North and South America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. The company's Utilities segment operates approximately 2,900 km of electricity transmission lines; 4,200 km of natural gas pipelines; 8.1 million electricity and natural gas connections; and 0.6 million long-term contracted sub-metering services. This segment also offers heating, cooling, and energy solutions; gas distribution; water heaters; and heating, ventilation, and air conditioner rental, as well as other home services. Its Transport segment offers transportation, storage, and handling services for merchandise goods, commodities, and passengers through a network of approximately 22,000 km of track; 5,500 km of track network; 9,800 km of rail; and 3,300 km of motorways. The company's Midstream segment offers natural gas transmission, gathering and processing, and storage services through approximately 15,000 km of natural gas transmission pipelines; 570 billion cubic feet of natural gas storage; 17 natural gas processing plants; and 10,600 km of gas gathering pipelines, as well as 525,000 tonnes polypropylene production capacity. Its Data segment operates approximately 228,000 operational telecom towers; approximately 54,000 kilometers of fiber optic cables; approximately 1 million fiber-to-the-premise connections; two semiconductor manufacturing facilities; and 70 distributed antenna systems, as well as 135 data centers and 750 megawatts of critical load capacity and an additional approximate 670 megawatts of contracted capacity. The company was incorporated in 2007 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda. Brookfield Infrastructure Partners L.P. operates as a subsidiary of Brookfield Corporation.

About Algonquin Power & Utilities

Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp. is an investment holding company, which engages in energy generation and water distribution facilities. It operates through the Regulated Services Group and Renewable Energy Group segments. The Regulated Services Group segment owns and operates a portfolio of electric, natural gas, water distribution, and wastewater collection utility systems and transmission. The Renewable Energy Group segment focuses on operating a diversified portfolio of renewable and thermal electric generation assets. The company was founded on August 1, 1988 and is headquartered in Oakville, Canada.