Babcock International Group (BAB) Competitors

Balfour Beatty (LON:BBY) and Babcock International Group (LON:BAB) are both mid-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, valuation, earnings, media sentiment, institutional ownership and profitability.

Does the media prefer BBY or BAB?

In the previous week, Babcock International Group had 2 more articles in the media than Balfour Beatty. MarketBeat recorded 2 mentions for Babcock International Group and 0 mentions for Balfour Beatty. Babcock International Group's average media sentiment score of 0.22 beat Balfour Beatty's score of 0.00 indicating that Babcock International Group is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
Balfour Beatty	Neutral
Babcock International Group	Neutral

Which has more risk and volatility, BBY or BAB?

Balfour Beatty has a beta of 0.81, indicating that its share price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Babcock International Group has a beta of 1.28, indicating that its share price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of BBY or BAB?

61.7% of Balfour Beatty shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 77.0% of Babcock International Group shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of Balfour Beatty shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of Babcock International Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Do analysts rate BBY or BAB?

Balfour Beatty currently has a consensus price target of GBX 542.50, indicating a potential upside of 5.03%. Babcock International Group has a consensus price target of GBX 970, indicating a potential downside of 9.85%. Given Balfour Beatty's higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Balfour Beatty is more favorable than Babcock International Group.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Balfour Beatty	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Babcock International Group	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Which has higher valuation and earnings, BBY or BAB?

Balfour Beatty has higher revenue and earnings than Babcock International Group. Balfour Beatty is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Babcock International Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Balfour Beatty	£7.72B	0.34	£219.98M	£42.83	12.06
Babcock International Group	£4.37B	1.23	£165.10M	£33.05	32.56

Is BBY or BAB a better dividend stock?

Balfour Beatty pays an annual dividend of GBX 12 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Babcock International Group pays an annual dividend of GBX 5 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Balfour Beatty pays out 28.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Babcock International Group pays out 15.1% 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.

Is BBY or BAB more profitable?

Babcock International Group has a net margin of 3.77% compared to Balfour Beatty's net margin of 2.85%. Babcock International Group's return on equity of 44.68% beat Balfour Beatty's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Balfour Beatty	2.85%	19.46%	1.63%
Babcock International Group	3.77%	44.68%	4.47%

Summary

Babcock International Group beats Balfour Beatty on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.