Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. WEC scored 56.8, WTRG scored 63.8 — WTRG leads.
Compare another set
WEC
WEC Energy Group, Inc.
Utilities - Regulated Electric · Quality-Growth
56.8
$103.74 · $33.8B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
7.0
WTRG leads
WTRG
Essential Utilities, Inc.
Utilities - Regulated Water · Quality-Growth
63.8
$38.98 · $11.1B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
Fastest growthWTRG+9.9%
Strongest balance sheetWTRG1.22
Highest qualityWEC58 / 100
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
WEC
stronger →← stronger
WTRG
58
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
57
62
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
66
51
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
68
WTRG is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
WEC
WTRG
$877mC+
FCF
-$1.0bF
+8.9%B
Rev
+9.9%B
1.58B
D/E
1.22B+
20.1xB
P/E
—
2.03C
PEG
3.45D
—
P/S
4.3xC
Winner per row is the stronger grade; where grades tie, the better figure breaks it. A true tie or a missing value shows no highlight.
Valuation · DCF cross-check
WEC
WTRG
141% above
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
—
~28%/yr
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
—
-60%
1-yr DCF upside
—
-59%
5-yr DCF upside
—
-56%
10-yr DCF upside
—
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
WEC
Why this score
Raising its dividend
WTRG
Why this score
Raising its dividend
The companies
WECWEC Energy Group, Inc.
Utilities - Regulated Electric · $103.74 · beta 0.44
Why now
Utilities - Regulated Electric · market cap $33.8b. 13% off the 52-week high of $119.91. 17 sell-side analysts rate this a Buy with a mean 1-yr target of $120.26 (implying +16% upside).
Moat
Net margin 17% beats the market median by a meaningful margin — the company is keeping more of every revenue dollar than the average S&P constituent. ROE 12% meets the long-run market sustainable threshold — solid but not differentiated; the durability comes from elsewhere.
Risk
Mature compounder — the risk is paying up for quality at a moment when growth is decelerating. Watch for sequential revenue + margin trends; the inflection from "compounder" to "ex-compounder" is hard to spot until the multiple already started compressing.
WTRGEssential Utilities, Inc.
Utilities - Regulated Water · $38.98 · beta 0.62
Why now
Utilities - Regulated Water · market cap $11.1b. 8% off the 52-week high of $42.51. 5 sell-side analysts rate this a Hold with a mean 1-yr target of $42.20 (implying +8% upside).
Moat
Net margin 41% is exceptional — pricing-power territory rare outside premium software, branded staples, and specialty pharma. ROE 15% meets the long-run market sustainable threshold — solid but not differentiated; the durability comes from elsewhere.
Risk
Free cash flow is negative (-$1.0b) — capital raises or debt issuance likely required; dilution / leverage risk.
Verdict — model-derived comparison
Generating verdict… typically 5–10 seconds
Not investment advice. The Bull Rankings publishes a quantitative ranking model and accompanying analysis for general informational purposes only. Nothing on this page is a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security; nothing is personalized to your circumstances, risk tolerance, or tax situation. Investing carries the risk of loss — invest at your own risk and consider consulting a licensed financial professional before acting on anything you read here. See terms and methodology for full disclosures.
Where WEC and WTRG diverge
On the headline score the gap is 7.0 points in favor of WTRG. The widest single difference is Value, where WTRG leads by 16.7 points.
ValueWEC 51.5 · WTRG 68.2WTRG +16.7
GrowthWEC 62.0 · WTRG 66.5WTRG +4.5
QualityWEC 57.5 · WTRG 57.3level
Pillars run 0–100. Value is judged against each company's own sector, so a Value score is a statement about a company relative to its own industry rather than to the other name here. A wide Value gap usually means the market already prices the difference in quality or growth — which is the trade-off this comparison comes down to.
Common questions
Is WTRG or WEC the better stock?
WTRG scores higher: WTRG 63.8, WEC 56.8 out of 100 on the Bull Rankings quality-growth score, which blends business quality, growth and valuation into one number. A higher score means a stronger business at a more reasonable price — it is not a price target or a recommendation.
Where do WTRG and WEC differ most?
The widest gap is value, where WTRG leads by 17 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. WTRG also leads growth, while quality is effectively level between them.
How are WTRG and WEC scored?
Each carries the same 0–100 quality-growth score used everywhere on the site, built from three pillars — quality (profitability and returns on capital), growth (revenue and earnings), and value (what you pay for them) — combined as a geometric mean, so a weak pillar cannot be papered over by a strong one.
How current is this comparison?
The whole universe is re-scored every trading day after the US market close, so the scores and fundamentals here reflect the latest published edition.