Contrasting Standex International (NYSE:SXI) and Burnham (OTCMKTS:BURCA)

Standex International (NYSE:SXI) and Burnham (OTCMKTS:BURCA) are both industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, profitability, dividends, valuation and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Standex International and Burnham’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Standex International	11.18%	14.62%	6.63%
Burnham	-7.96%	11.68%	7.35%

Volatility and Risk

Standex International has a beta of 1.09, indicating that its share price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Burnham has a beta of 0.16, indicating that its share price is 84% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

90.4% of Standex International shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 1.5% of Burnham shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.5% of Standex International shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Standex International pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Burnham pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.4%. Standex International pays out 16.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Burnham pays out -20.1% 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. Standex International has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Burnham is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Standex International and Burnham, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Standex International	1	1	3	0	2.40
Burnham	0	0	0	0	0.00

Standex International presently has a consensus price target of $289.67, suggesting a potential upside of 11.65%. Given Standex International’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Standex International is more favorable than Burnham.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Standex International and Burnham”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Standex International	$790.11 million	3.98	$55.76 million	$8.21	31.60
Burnham	$258.11 million	0.35	-$21.45 million	($4.58)	-5.84

Standex International has higher revenue and earnings than Burnham. Burnham is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Standex International, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Standex International beats Burnham on 14 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Standex International

Standex International Corporation, together with subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of various products and services for commercial and industrial markets in the United States and internationally. It operates through five segments: Electronics, Engraving, Scientific, Engineering Technologies, and Specialty Solutions. The Electronics segment offers reed relays, fluid level, proximity, motion, flow, HVAC condensate, and custom electronics sensors; and custom wound transformers and inductors for low and high frequency, current sense technology, advanced planar transformer technology, value added assembly, and mechanical packaging applications under the Standex Electronics, Renco, and Agile Magnetics. The Engraving segment provides mold texturizing, slush molding tools, roll engraving, hygiene product tooling, and low observation vents, as well as project management and design services for stealth aircraft; and process machinery for various industries under the Piazza Rosa, World Client Services, Tenibac-Graphion, GS Engineering, and Innovent brand names. The Scientific segment offers temperature-controlled equipment for the medical, scientific, pharmaceutical, biotech, and industrial markets under the American BioTech Supply, Lab Research Products, Corepoint, Cryosafe, CryoGuard, and Scientific brands. The Engineering Technologies segment offers net and near net formed single-source customized solutions that are used in the manufacture of engineered components for the aviation, aerospace, defense, energy, industrial, medical, marine, oil and gas, and manned and unmanned space markets under the Spincraft brand. The Specialty Solutions segment manufactures and sells refrigerated, heated, and dry merchandizing display cases; and single and double acting telescopic, and piston rod hydraulic cylinders under the Federal and Custom Hoist brands. The company was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Salem, New Hampshire.

About Burnham

Burnham Holdings, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells boilers and related heating, ventilation, and air conditioning products and accessories for residential, commercial, and industrial applications in the United States and internationally. Its residential hydronic heating products include cast iron, stainless steel, and steel boilers; cast iron and steel heat distribution products; radiators; and warm air furnaces and central air conditioning systems for the residential heating and cooling markets, including units for the manufactured housing industry. The company's commercial and industrial heating products comprise a range of cast iron, stainless steel, fire tube, water tube, copper tube boilers, and water heaters; and boiler room accessories that are used for various applications, such as military bases, multi-unit residential buildings, health care, government, education, and hospital facilities. The company sells its residential products through wholesale distributors to builders, heating contractors, fuel dealers, and utilities for resale to end-use customers; and commercial products primarily through independent sales representatives, directly to contractors, or end users. Burnham Holdings, Inc. is based in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.