Hilton Food Group (HFG) Competitors

Hilton Food Group (LON:HFG) and Cranswick (LON:CWK) are both consumer defensive companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability and earnings.

Which has more risk and volatility, HFG or CWK?

Hilton Food Group has a beta of 0.57, meaning that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cranswick has a beta of 0.44, meaning that its stock price is 56% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is HFG or CWK more profitable?

Cranswick has a net margin of 4.35% compared to Hilton Food Group's net margin of 1.22%. Hilton Food Group's return on equity of 15.15% beat Cranswick's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hilton Food Group	1.22%	15.15%	4.96%
Cranswick	4.35%	12.64%	8.26%

Which has better earnings and valuation, HFG or CWK?

Cranswick has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Hilton Food Group. Hilton Food Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cranswick, 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
Hilton Food Group	£3.80B	0.21	£46.35M	£51.96	16.86
Cranswick	£2.61B	1.10	£113.74M	£210.14	25.27

Does the media favor HFG or CWK?

In the previous week, Hilton Food Group and Hilton Food Group both had 3 articles in the media. Cranswick's average media sentiment score of 0.81 beat Hilton Food Group's score of 0.15 indicating that Cranswick is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Hilton Food Group	0 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Cranswick	0 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in HFG or CWK?

62.3% of Hilton Food Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.6% of Cranswick shares are owned by institutional investors. 14.3% of Hilton Food Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.5% of Cranswick shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Is HFG or CWK a better dividend stock?

Hilton Food Group pays an annual dividend of GBX 33 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Cranswick pays an annual dividend of GBX 90 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Hilton Food Group pays out 63.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Cranswick pays out 42.8% 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.

Do analysts rate HFG or CWK?

Hilton Food Group currently has a consensus target price of GBX 1,091.67, indicating a potential upside of 24.62%. Cranswick has a consensus target price of GBX 5,185, indicating a potential downside of 2.35%. Given Hilton Food Group's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Hilton Food Group is more favorable than Cranswick.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hilton Food Group	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67
Cranswick	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Summary

Cranswick beats Hilton Food Group on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.