Contrasting Manila Water (OTCMKTS:MWTCY) and York Water (NASDAQ:YORW)

Manila Water (OTCMKTS:MWTCY) and York Water (NASDAQ:YORW) are both utilities companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Manila Water and York Water, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Manila Water	0	0	0	0	N/A
York Water	0	0	0	0	N/A

Dividends

Manila Water pays an annual dividend of C$6.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 50.8%. York Water pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Manila Water pays out 10.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. York Water pays out 49.4% 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. York Water has increased its dividend for 26 consecutive years. Manila Water is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Manila Water and York Water”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Manila Water	N/A	N/A	N/A	C$58.75	0.21
York Water	$73.24 million	7.43	$23.76 million	$1.70	22.31

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

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.0% of Manila Water shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 49.9% of York Water shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.3% of York Water shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Manila Water and York Water’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Manila Water	N/A	N/A	N/A
York Water	31.27%	10.32%	3.88%

Summary

York Water beats Manila Water on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Manila Water

Manila Water Company, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides water treatment and distribution, sewerage, and sanitation services in the Philippines and internationally. The company offers integrated used water, pipework, engineering, procurement, and management services. It also provides its services to people in the East Zone encompassing cities and municipalities, including Makati, Mandaluyong, Pasig, Pateros, San Juan, Taguig, Marikina, Quezon City, and Manila, as well as Rizal towns comprising Angono, Antipolo, Baras, Binangonan, Cainta, Cardona, Jala-Jala, Morong, Pililia, Rodriguez, San Mateo, Tanay, Taytay, and Teresa. The company serves residential, commercial, semi-business, and industrial customers. Manila Water Company, Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is based in Quezon City, the Philippines.

About York Water

The York Water Company impounds, purifies, and distributes drinking water. It owns and operates three wastewater collection systems; ten wastewater collection and treatment systems; and two reservoirs, including Lake Williams and Lake Redman, which hold approximately 2.2 billion gallons of water. The company also operates a 15-mile pipeline from the Susquehanna River to Lake Redman; and owns satellite groundwater systems in York, Adams, and Lancaster Counties, as well as two impounding dams on primary system located in York and Springfield Townships. It serves customers in the fixtures and furniture, electrical machinery, food products, paper, ordnance units, textile products, air conditioning systems, laundry detergents, barbells, and motorcycle industries in 56 municipalities within four counties in south-central Pennsylvania. The York Water Company was incorporated in 1816 and is based in York, Pennsylvania.