Universal (UVV) Competitors

Philip Morris International (NYSE:PM) and Universal (NYSE:UVV) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, media sentiment, dividends and profitability.

Is PM or UVV a better dividend stock?

Philip Morris International pays an annual dividend of $5.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Universal pays an annual dividend of $3.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.1%. Philip Morris International pays out 102.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Universal pays out 86.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Philip Morris International has raised its dividend for 17 consecutive years and Universal has raised its dividend for 56 consecutive years. Universal is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of PM or UVV?

78.6% of Philip Morris International shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.0% of Universal shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Philip Morris International shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.9% of Universal shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Which has preferable earnings & valuation, PM or UVV?

Philip Morris International has higher revenue and earnings than Universal. Universal is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Philip Morris International, 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
Philip Morris International	$89.44B	2.84	$7.06B	$5.26	30.98
Universal	$2.95B	0.45	$95.05M	$3.78	14.28

Which has more risk & volatility, PM or UVV?

Philip Morris International has a beta of 0.49, suggesting that its share price is 51% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Universal has a beta of 0.73, suggesting that its share price is 27% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is PM or UVV more profitable?

Philip Morris International has a net margin of 9.03% compared to Universal's net margin of 3.22%. Universal's return on equity of 7.89% beat Philip Morris International's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Philip Morris International	9.03%	-120.86%	16.83%
Universal	3.22%	7.89%	3.84%

Do analysts prefer PM or UVV?

Philip Morris International presently has a consensus target price of $186.27, suggesting a potential upside of 14.31%. Given Philip Morris International's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Philip Morris International is more favorable than Universal.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Philip Morris International	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	11 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.92
Universal	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00

Does the media favor PM or UVV?

In the previous week, Philip Morris International had 31 more articles in the media than Universal. MarketBeat recorded 51 mentions for Philip Morris International and 20 mentions for Universal. Philip Morris International's average media sentiment score of 1.36 beat Universal's score of 0.66 indicating that Philip Morris International is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Philip Morris International	42 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	5 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Universal	9 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	6 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Summary

Philip Morris International beats Universal on 12 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.