Critical Review: Alternus Clean Energy (NASDAQ:ALCE) & CMS Energy (NYSE:CMS)

Alternus Clean Energy (NASDAQ:ALCE) and CMS Energy (NYSE:CMS) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Alternus Clean Energy and CMS Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Alternus Clean Energy	0	0	0	0	N/A
CMS Energy	0	4	7	0	2.64

CMS Energy has a consensus price target of $64.27, indicating a potential upside of 7.57%. Given CMS Energy’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe CMS Energy is more favorable than Alternus Clean Energy.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

93.6% of CMS Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.3% of Alternus Clean Energy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of CMS Energy shares are owned by 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.

Volatility & Risk

Alternus Clean Energy has a beta of -0.58, indicating that its stock price is 158% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CMS Energy has a beta of 0.4, indicating that its stock price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Alternus Clean Energy and CMS Energy’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Alternus Clean Energy	$20.08 million	1.46	-$69.46 million	N/A	N/A
CMS Energy	$7.46 billion	2.39	$887.00 million	$3.28	18.22

CMS Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Alternus Clean Energy.

Profitability

This table compares Alternus Clean Energy and CMS Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Alternus Clean Energy	N/A	N/A	N/A
CMS Energy	13.19%	12.83%	3.03%

Summary

CMS Energy beats Alternus Clean Energy on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Alternus Clean Energy

Alternus Energy Group Plc operates as an international vertically integrated independent power producer. It owns, develops, installs, and operates midsized utility scale solar parks. The company was incorporated in 2019 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.

About CMS Energy

CMS Energy Corporation operates as an energy company primarily in Michigan. The company operates through three segments: Electric Utility; Gas Utility; and Enterprises. The Electric Utility segment is involved in the generation, purchase, transmission, distribution, and sale of electricity. This segment generates electricity through coal, wind, gas, renewable energy, oil, and nuclear sources. Its distribution system comprises 208 miles of high-voltage distribution overhead lines; 4 miles of high-voltage distribution underground lines; 4,428 miles of high-voltage distribution overhead lines; 19 miles of high-voltage distribution underground lines; 82,474 miles of electric distribution overhead lines; 9,395 miles of underground distribution lines; 1,093 substations; and 3 battery facilities. The Gas Utility segment engages in the purchase, transmission, storage, distribution, and sale of natural gas, which includes 2,392 miles of transmission lines; 15 gas storage fields; 28,065 miles of distribution mains; and 8 compressor stations. The Enterprises segment is involved in the independent power production and marketing, including the development and operation of renewable generation. It serves 1.9 million electric and 1.8 million gas customers, including residential, commercial, and diversified industrial customers. The company was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Jackson, Michigan.