Head-To-Head Contrast: Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) vs. Via Renewables (NASDAQ:VIASP)

Xcel Energy (NASDAQ:XEL) and Via Renewables (NASDAQ:VIASP) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, institutional ownership and valuation.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Xcel Energy and Via Renewables’ top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Xcel Energy	$14.82 billion	2.24	$1.74 billion	$3.16	19.01
Via Renewables	$450.87 million	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Xcel Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Via Renewables.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Xcel Energy and Via Renewables, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Xcel Energy	0	7	5	0	2.42
Via Renewables	0	0	0	0	N/A

Xcel Energy currently has a consensus target price of $64.45, indicating a potential upside of 7.32%. Given Xcel Energy’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Xcel Energy is more favorable than Via Renewables.

Profitability

This table compares Xcel Energy and Via Renewables’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Xcel Energy	11.75%	10.44%	2.87%
Via Renewables	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Xcel Energy pays an annual dividend of $2.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Via Renewables pays an annual dividend of $3.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 15.2%. Xcel Energy pays out 65.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Xcel Energy has raised its dividend for 20 consecutive years and Via Renewables has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

77.8% of Xcel Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Xcel Energy shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Xcel Energy beats Via Renewables on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Xcel Energy

Xcel Energy Inc., through its subsidiaries, generates, purchases, transmits, distributes, and sells electricity. It operates through Regulated Electric Utility, Regulated Natural Gas Utility, and All Other segments. The company generates electricity through coal, nuclear, natural gas, hydroelectric, solar, biomass, oil, wood/refuse, and wind energy sources. It also purchases, transports, distributes, and sells natural gas to retail customers, as well as transports customer-owned natural gas. In addition, the company develops and leases natural gas pipelines, and storage and compression facilities; and invests in rental housing projects, as well as procures equipment for the construction of renewable generation facilities. It serves residential, commercial, and industrial customers in the portions of Colorado, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, and Wisconsin. The company was incorporated in 1909 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

About Via Renewables

Via Renewables, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as an independent retail energy services company in the United States. It operates through two segments, Retail Electricity and Retail Natural Gas. The Retail Electricity segment engages in the transmission and sale of electricity to residential and commercial customers. The Retail Natural Gas segment is involved in the transportation, distribution, and sale of natural gas to residential and commercial customers. As of December 31, 2022, the company operated in 102 utility service territories across 19 states and the District of Columbia. It has approximately 331,000 residential customer equivalents. The company was formerly known as Spark Energy, Inc. and changed its name to Via Renewables, Inc. in August 2021. Via Renewables, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.