L.B. Foster (FSTR) Competitors

Hawkins (NASDAQ:HWKN) and L.B. Foster (NASDAQ:FSTR) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, risk, institutional ownership, media sentiment, earnings, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Is HWKN or FSTR more profitable?

Hawkins has a net margin of 8.37% compared to L.B. Foster's net margin of 7.19%. Hawkins' return on equity of 18.35% beat L.B. Foster's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hawkins	8.37%	18.35%	10.73%
L.B. Foster	7.19%	3.64%	1.88%

Which has better valuation and earnings, HWKN or FSTR?

Hawkins has higher revenue and earnings than L.B. Foster. L.B. Foster is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hawkins, 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
Hawkins	$974.43M	3.68	$84.35M	$4.06	42.33
L.B. Foster	$530.77M	0.55	$42.95M	$3.32	8.24

Do institutionals and insiders have more ownership in HWKN or FSTR?

69.7% of Hawkins shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.6% of L.B. Foster shares are held by institutional investors. 4.1% of Hawkins shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.7% of L.B. Foster shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the media refer more to HWKN or FSTR?

In the previous week, Hawkins had 1 more articles in the media than L.B. Foster. MarketBeat recorded 7 mentions for Hawkins and 6 mentions for L.B. Foster. Hawkins' average media sentiment score of 1.08 beat L.B. Foster's score of 0.73 indicating that Hawkins is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Hawkins	3 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
L.B. Foster	1 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has more risk and volatility, HWKN or FSTR?

Hawkins has a beta of 0.84, suggesting that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, L.B. Foster has a beta of 0.96, suggesting that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts rate HWKN or FSTR?

Hawkins presently has a consensus target price of $162.50, suggesting a potential downside of 5.45%. L.B. Foster has a consensus target price of $25.00, suggesting a potential downside of 8.59%. Given Hawkins' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Hawkins is more favorable than L.B. Foster.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hawkins	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.60
L.B. Foster	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Summary

Hawkins beats L.B. Foster on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.