Koppers (KOP) Competitors

Koppers (NYSE:KOP) and Linde (NASDAQ:LIN) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, media sentiment, risk, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability and valuation.

Does the media favor KOP or LIN?

In the previous week, Linde had 37 more articles in the media than Koppers. MarketBeat recorded 39 mentions for Linde and 2 mentions for Koppers. Koppers' average media sentiment score of 1.78 beat Linde's score of 1.51 indicating that Koppers is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Koppers	2 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive
Linde	34 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Very Positive

Do analysts recommend KOP or LIN?

Koppers currently has a consensus target price of $64.00, indicating a potential upside of 89.97%. Linde has a consensus target price of $515.90, indicating a potential upside of 8.42%. Given Koppers' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Koppers is more favorable than Linde.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Koppers	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.50
Linde	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	9 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Which has more risk & volatility, KOP or LIN?

Koppers has a beta of 1.49, indicating that its share price is 49% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Linde has a beta of 0.96, indicating that its share price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Which has better earnings and valuation, KOP or LIN?

Linde has higher revenue and earnings than Koppers. Koppers is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Linde, 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
Koppers	$2.09B	0.32	$52.40M	$1.16	29.04
Linde	$33.01B	6.79	$6.57B	$13.77	34.56

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in KOP or LIN?

92.8% of Koppers shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 82.8% of Linde shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.9% of Koppers shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of Linde shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Is KOP or LIN a better dividend stock?

Koppers pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. Linde pays an annual dividend of $6.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Koppers pays out 27.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Linde pays out 43.6% 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. Koppers has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years and Linde has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Linde is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Is KOP or LIN more profitable?

Linde has a net margin of 20.02% compared to Koppers' net margin of 1.24%. Linde's return on equity of 18.95% beat Koppers' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Koppers	1.24%	17.41%	4.60%
Linde	20.02%	18.95%	9.26%

Summary

Linde beats Koppers on 13 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.