Contrasting Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH) and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. (OTCMKTS:TKGSY)

Suburban Propane Partners (NYSE:SPH) and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. (OTCMKTS:TKGSY) are both utilities companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, profitability, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Suburban Propane Partners and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd., as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Suburban Propane Partners	0	1	0	2	3.33
Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.	0	0	0	0	0.00

Insider & Institutional Ownership

30.9% of Suburban Propane Partners shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.1% of Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.1% of Suburban Propane Partners shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Suburban Propane Partners pays an annual dividend of $1.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.4%. Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. pays an annual dividend of $0.22 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Suburban Propane Partners pays out 66.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. pays out 0.1% 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.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Suburban Propane Partners and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Suburban Propane Partners	$1.43 billion	0.81	$106.57 million	$1.96	8.93
Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.	N/A	N/A	N/A	$197.62	0.10

Suburban Propane Partners has higher revenue and earnings than Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.. Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Suburban Propane Partners, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Suburban Propane Partners and Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Suburban Propane Partners	9.37%	18.57%	5.25%
Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

Suburban Propane Partners beats Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Suburban Propane Partners

Suburban Propane Partners, L.P., through its subsidiaries, engages in the retail marketing and distribution of propane, renewable propane, fuel oil, and refined fuels in the United States. The company operates through four segments: Propane, Fuel Oil and Refined Fuels, Natural Gas and Electricity, and All Other. The Propane segment is involved in the retail distribution of propane for space heating, water heating, cooking, and clothes drying for use as a motor fuel in internal combustion engines to power over-the-road vehicles, forklifts, and stationary engines, as well as to fire furnaces as a cutting gas to the industrial customers; and for tobacco curing, crop drying, poultry brooding, and weed control in the agricultural markets. It also engages in the wholesale distribution of propane to industrial end users. Its Fuel Oil and Refined Fuels segment engages in the retail distribution of fuel oil, diesel, kerosene, and gasoline to residential and commercial customers for use in primarily as a source of heat in homes and buildings. The Natural Gas and Electricity segment markets natural gas and electricity to residential and commercial customers in the deregulated energy markets in New York and Pennsylvania. The All Other segment sells, installs, and services a range of home comfort equipment, including whole-house heating products, air cleaners, humidifiers, and space heaters. The company serves residential, commercial, industrial, and agricultural customers primarily in the east and west coast regions of the United States, as well as portions of the Midwest region of the United States and Alaska. Suburban Propane Partners, L.P. was founded in 1945 and is based in Whippany, New Jersey.

About Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd.

Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. engages in the production, supply, and sale of city gas, and LNG in Japan. The company offers engineering solutions; gas construction; and gas pipelines services, as well as engages in gas appliances business. It is also involved in fuel procurement, power generation, and sales of electricity; and overseas resource development, renewable energy, and LNG infrastructure business. In addition, the company provides district heating and cooling, and energy services; and develops LNG terminals and pipes. Further, it engages in the real estate development activities; and leasing and management of land and buildings. The company was formerly known as Tokyo Gas Company and changed its name to Tokyo Gas Co.,Ltd. in July 1893. The company was incorporated in 1885 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.