Verdict: Side-by-side breakdown using the Bull Rankings model. WTRG scored 63.8, CIG scored 66.6 — CIG leads.
Compare another set
WTRG
Essential Utilities, Inc.
Utilities - Regulated Water · Quality-Growth
63.8
$38.98 · $11.1B
fundamentals as of
Score gap
2.8
CIG leads
CIG
Companhia Energética de Minas Gerais - CEMIG
Utilities - Regulated Electric · Quality-Growth
66.6
$2.40 · $6.9B
fundamentals as of
At a glance · who leads each dimension, on the model's own rules
Fastest growthWTRG+9.9%
Strongest balance sheetCIG0.78
Highest qualityCIG81 / 100
Largest discount to fair valueCIG-19%
Side by side · every name on one set of axes
The model, pillar by pillar (0–100 each)
WTRG
stronger →← stronger
CIG
57
Qualityreturns · margins · balance sheet
81
66
Growthrevenue & earnings expansion
60
68
Valuevaluation vs sector peers
83
CIG is stronger on 2 of 3 pillars.
Fundamentals, head-to-head
WTRG
CIG
-$1.0bF
FCF
$518mC+
+9.9%B
Rev
+7.4%B
1.22B+
D/E
0.78A
4.3xC
P/S
—
3.45D
PEG
0.33A
—
P/E
7.7xA
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
WTRG
CIG
—
Price vs fair valuelower is cheaper
19% below
—
Growth the price impliesyr-1 FCF growth, fading to 4% · lower = less priced in
~1%/yr
—
1-yr DCF upside
+17%
—
5-yr DCF upside
+24%
—
10-yr DCF upside
+35%
The DCF is a cross-check on intrinsic value, separate from the quality-growth score above.
Model signals
WTRG
Why this score
Raising its dividend
CIG
Why this score
Durable high returns
Cut its dividend
Foreign reporter (BRL)
The companies
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.
CIGCompanhia Energética de Minas Gerais - CEMIG
Utilities - Regulated Electric · $2.40 · beta 0.06
Why now
Utilities - Regulated Electric · market cap $6.9b. 13% off the 52-week high of $2.76. PEG 0.33 — paying under fair value for the growth rate. 3 sell-side analysts publish a mean 1-yr target of $2.05 (implying -14% upside).
Moat
ROE 16% is above 15% — the equity base is compounding at a rate the market struggles to discount accurately.
Risk
Dividend payout 79% of earnings on a 6.2% yield — distribution coverage is thin; one earnings stumble could force a dividend cut.
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 WTRG and CIG diverge
On the headline score the gap is 2.8 points in favor of CIG. They get there differently, though — each leads on a different pillar, so the better pick depends on which you weight.
QualityWTRG 57.3 · CIG 81.0CIG +23.7
ValueWTRG 68.2 · CIG 83.1CIG +14.9
GrowthWTRG 66.5 · CIG 60.2WTRG +6.3
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 CIG or WTRG the better stock?
CIG scores higher: CIG 66.6, WTRG 63.8 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 CIG and WTRG differ most?
The widest gap is quality, where CIG leads by 24 points on the 0–100 pillar scale. Neither name sweeps: they trade the lead across the three pillars, so the comparison is a trade-off rather than one being better on every measure.
How are CIG and WTRG 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.