New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) vs. Cheniere Energy Partners (NYSE:CQP) Critical Survey

Cheniere Energy Partners (NYSE:CQP) and New Jersey Resources (NYSE:NJR) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, valuation, risk and earnings.

Volatility and Risk

Cheniere Energy Partners has a beta of 0.73, suggesting that its share price is 27% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, New Jersey Resources has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its share price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Cheniere Energy Partners and New Jersey Resources”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cheniere Energy Partners	$8.93 billion	2.90	$4.25 billion	$4.63	11.55
New Jersey Resources	$1.80 billion	2.59	$289.77 million	$2.92	16.00

Cheniere Energy Partners has higher revenue and earnings than New Jersey Resources. Cheniere Energy Partners is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than New Jersey Resources, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

46.5% of Cheniere Energy Partners shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 71.0% of New Jersey Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of New Jersey Resources shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Cheniere Energy Partners and New Jersey Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cheniere Energy Partners	31.28%	-328.60%	13.93%
New Jersey Resources	16.13%	13.54%	4.28%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Cheniere Energy Partners and New Jersey Resources, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cheniere Energy Partners	2	0	0	0	1.00
New Jersey Resources	0	3	1	1	2.60

Cheniere Energy Partners currently has a consensus price target of $50.50, suggesting a potential downside of 5.59%. New Jersey Resources has a consensus price target of $51.00, suggesting a potential upside of 9.18%. Given New Jersey Resources’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe New Jersey Resources is more favorable than Cheniere Energy Partners.

Dividends

Cheniere Energy Partners pays an annual dividend of $3.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.8%. New Jersey Resources pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Cheniere Energy Partners pays out 67.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. New Jersey Resources pays out 61.6% 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. New Jersey Resources has raised its dividend for 29 consecutive years.

Summary

New Jersey Resources beats Cheniere Energy Partners on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Cheniere Energy Partners

Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P., through its subsidiaries, provides liquefied natural gas (LNG) to integrated energy companies, utilities, and energy trading companies worldwide. The company owns and operates natural gas liquefaction and export facility at the Sabine Pass LNG Terminal located in Cameron Parish, Louisiana. It also owns a natural gas supply pipeline that interconnects the Sabine Pass LNG terminal with various interstate pipelines. The company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P. is a subsidiary of Cheniere Energy, Inc.

About New Jersey Resources

New Jersey Resources Corporation, an energy services holding company, distributes natural gas. The company operates through four segments: Natural Gas Distribution, Clean Energy Ventures, Energy Services, and Storage and Transportation. The Natural Gas Distribution segment offers regulated natural gas utility services to approximately 576,000 customers in Burlington, Middlesex, Monmouth, Morris, Ocean, and Sussex counties in New Jersey; provides capacity and storage management services; and participates in the off-system sales and capacity release markets. The Clean Energy Ventures segment invests in, owns, and operates clean energy projects, including commercial and residential solar installation situated in New Jersey, Rhode Island, New York, Connecticut, Michigan, and Indiana. The Energy Services segment maintains and operates natural gas transportation and storage capacity contracts, as well as provides physical wholesale energy, retail energy and energy management services in the United States and Canada. The Storage and Transportation segment invests in invests in energy-related ventures. It provides heating, ventilation, and cooling services; sales and installation of appliances; offers solar equipment installation, and plumbing repair and installation services; and holds commercial real estate properties. The company was incorporated in 1981 and is headquartered in Wall, New Jersey.