Jacobs Solutions (J) Competitors

Jacobs Solutions (NYSE:J) and AECOM (NYSE:ACM) are related large-cap companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, media sentiment, valuation, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and earnings.

Is J or ACM a better dividend stock?

Jacobs Solutions pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. AECOM pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Jacobs Solutions pays out 31.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. AECOM pays out 22.7% 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. Jacobs Solutions has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years and AECOM has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Jacobs Solutions is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Does the media prefer J or ACM?

In the previous week, Jacobs Solutions had 2 more articles in the media than AECOM. MarketBeat recorded 15 mentions for Jacobs Solutions and 13 mentions for AECOM. Jacobs Solutions' average media sentiment score of 1.57 beat AECOM's score of 0.93 indicating that Jacobs Solutions is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Jacobs Solutions	14 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive
AECOM	8 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has more risk and volatility, J or ACM?

Jacobs Solutions has a beta of 0.79, indicating that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, AECOM has a beta of 0.99, indicating that its share price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in J or ACM?

85.7% of Jacobs Solutions shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 85.4% of AECOM shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of Jacobs Solutions shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of AECOM shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Do analysts rate J or ACM?

Jacobs Solutions presently has a consensus target price of $155.25, suggesting a potential upside of 4.16%. AECOM has a consensus target price of $128.44, suggesting a potential downside of 3.17%. Given Jacobs Solutions' higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Jacobs Solutions is more favorable than AECOM.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Jacobs Solutions	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67
AECOM	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	9 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Which has better earnings and valuation, J or ACM?

Jacobs Solutions has higher earnings, but lower revenue than AECOM. AECOM is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Jacobs Solutions, 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
Jacobs Solutions	$11.84B	1.51	$821.09M	$4.01	37.17
AECOM	$16.11B	1.09	$402.27M	$4.59	28.90

Is J or ACM more profitable?

Jacobs Solutions has a net margin of 4.16% compared to AECOM's net margin of 3.82%. AECOM's return on equity of 27.87% beat Jacobs Solutions' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Jacobs Solutions	4.16%	17.13%	6.15%
AECOM	3.82%	27.87%	5.78%

Summary

Jacobs Solutions beats AECOM on 11 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.