Smiths Group (SMIN) Competitors

Melrose Industries (LON:MRO) and Smiths Group (LON:SMIN) are both mid-cap industrials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, valuation and dividends.

Is MRO or SMIN more profitable?

Smiths Group has a net margin of 7.98% compared to Melrose Industries' net margin of -1.13%. Smiths Group's return on equity of 11.54% beat Melrose Industries' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Melrose Industries	-1.13%	-1.18%	0.11%
Smiths Group	7.98%	11.54%	6.47%

Does the media favor MRO or SMIN?

In the previous week, Melrose Industries had 1 more articles in the media than Smiths Group. MarketBeat recorded 6 mentions for Melrose Industries and 5 mentions for Smiths Group. Melrose Industries' average media sentiment score of 1.13 beat Smiths Group's score of 0.74 indicating that Melrose Industries is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Melrose Industries	4 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Smiths Group	2 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts rate MRO or SMIN?

Melrose Industries currently has a consensus price target of GBX 655, indicating a potential upside of 9.17%. Given Melrose Industries' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Melrose Industries is more favorable than Smiths Group.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Melrose Industries	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.75
Smiths Group	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00

Which has stronger earnings and valuation, MRO or SMIN?

Smiths Group has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Melrose Industries. Melrose Industries is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Smiths 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
Melrose Industries	£3.45B	2.20	-£38.41M	£0.25	2,439.02
Smiths Group	£3.23B	2.40	£245.01M	£0.89	2,680.95

Is MRO or SMIN a better dividend stock?

Melrose Industries pays an annual dividend of GBX 0.06 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.0%. Smiths Group pays an annual dividend of GBX 0.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.0%. Melrose Industries pays out 24.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Smiths Group pays out 49.3% 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 insiders and institutionals hold more shares of MRO or SMIN?

83.3% of Melrose Industries shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.3% of Smiths Group shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of Melrose Industries shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of Smiths Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Which has more volatility and risk, MRO or SMIN?

Melrose Industries has a beta of 1.51, suggesting that its share price is 51% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Smiths Group has a beta of 0.66, suggesting that its share price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Melrose Industries beats Smiths Group on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.