Iberdrola (OTCMKTS:IBDRY – Get Free Report) and Vistra (NYSE:VST – Get Free Report) are both large-cap utilities companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and dividends.

Iberdrola pays an annual dividend of $2.98 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.7%. Vistra pays an annual dividend of $0.90 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Iberdrola pays out 82.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Vistra pays out 14.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Vistra has increased its dividend for 6 consecutive years.

This table compares Iberdrola and Vistra”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

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

Iberdrola has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vistra has a beta of 1.3, suggesting that its stock price is 30% more volatile than the S&P 500.

This table compares Iberdrola and Vistra’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

0.0% of Iberdrola shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 90.9% of Vistra shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of Vistra shares are held by company 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.

This is a summary of current recommendations for Iberdrola and Vistra, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

Vistra has a consensus price target of $229.93, indicating a potential upside of 19.10%. Given Vistra’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Vistra is more favorable than Iberdrola.

Vistra beats Iberdrola on 15 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.