Comparing Travis Perkins (OTCMKTS:TPRKY) & Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW)

Lowe’s Companies (NYSE:LOW) and Travis Perkins (OTCMKTS:TPRKY) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, valuation, profitability and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Lowe’s Companies and Travis Perkins’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lowe’s Companies	8.19%	-47.55%	15.28%
Travis Perkins	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider & Institutional Ownership

74.1% of Lowe’s Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Lowe’s Companies shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

Lowe’s Companies has a beta of 1.1, meaning that its stock price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Travis Perkins has a beta of 0.75, meaning that its stock price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Lowe’s Companies and Travis Perkins, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lowe’s Companies	0	10	15	0	2.60
Travis Perkins	0	0	0	0	0.00

Lowe’s Companies currently has a consensus price target of $277.92, suggesting a potential upside of 1.48%. Given Lowe’s Companies’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Lowe’s Companies is more favorable than Travis Perkins.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Lowe’s Companies and Travis Perkins”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lowe’s Companies	$86.38 billion	1.80	$7.73 billion	$11.99	22.84
Travis Perkins	$6.05 billion	N/A	$47.39 million	N/A	N/A

Lowe’s Companies has higher revenue and earnings than Travis Perkins.

Dividends

Lowe’s Companies pays an annual dividend of $4.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Travis Perkins pays an annual dividend of $0.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Lowe’s Companies pays out 38.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Lowe’s Companies beats Travis Perkins on 11 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lowe’s Companies

Lowe’s Companies, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a home improvement retailer in the United States. The company offers a line of products for construction, maintenance, repair, remodeling, and decorating. It also provides home improvement products, such as appliances, seasonal and outdoor living, lawn and garden, lumber, kitchens and bath, tools, paint, millwork, hardware, flooring, rough plumbing, building materials, décor, and electrical. In addition, the company offers installation services through independent contractors in various product categories; and extended protection plans and repair services. It sells its national brand-name merchandise and private brand products to professional customers, homeowners, renters, businesses, and government. The company also sells its products through Lowes.com website; and through mobile applications. Lowe’s Companies, Inc. was founded in 1921 and is based in Mooresville, North Carolina.

About Travis Perkins

Travis Perkins plc engages in distribution of building material products in the United Kingdom. It operates through Merchanting and Toolstation segments. The company offers tools and building supplies. It also distributes pipeline products, as well as supplies managed services, and commercial and industrial heating and cooling solutions. In addition, the company provides in specialist civils and drainage solutions; and air-conditioning and refrigeration products and heat pumps. Further, it provides insulation and interior building products to interior building specialists, contractors, and builders; and kitchens and joinery products. Additionally, the company manufactures and supplies staircases, i-joists, precision floor kits, painted MDF profiles, and door kits/sets. The company markets its products under Travis Perkins, Toolstation, BSS, Keyline, and CCF brands. It sells its products through branches and distribution centres, as well as online. Travis Perkins plc was founded in 1797 and is headquartered in Northampton, the United Kingdom.