Conagra Brands (NYSE:CAG – Get Free Report) and Marzetti (NASDAQ:MZTI – Get Free Report) are both mid-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, profitability, valuation, dividends and institutional ownership.
Profitability
This table compares Conagra Brands and Marzetti’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Conagra Brands | -16.99% | 10.44% | 4.27% |
| Marzetti | 9.06% | 18.12% | 14.01% |
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Conagra Brands and Marzetti, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Conagra Brands | 6 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1.72 |
| Marzetti | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
Dividends
Conagra Brands pays an annual dividend of $1.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 9.5%. Marzetti pays an annual dividend of $4.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.7%. Conagra Brands pays out -35.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Marzetti pays out 62.6% 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. Conagra Brands has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years and Marzetti has increased its dividend for 62 consecutive years. Conagra Brands is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Conagra Brands and Marzetti”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Conagra Brands | $11.28 billion | 0.63 | -$1.92 billion | ($4.00) | -3.69 |
| Marzetti | $1.91 billion | 1.54 | $167.35 million | $6.39 | 16.77 |
Marzetti has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Conagra Brands. Conagra Brands is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Marzetti, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
83.8% of Conagra Brands shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 66.4% of Marzetti shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of Conagra Brands shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 29.1% of Marzetti shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Risk and Volatility
Conagra Brands has a beta of -0.02, suggesting that its stock price is 102% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Marzetti has a beta of 0.32, suggesting that its stock price is 68% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Marzetti beats Conagra Brands on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Conagra Brands
Conagra Brands, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a consumer packaged goods food company primarily in the United States. The company operates through Grocery & Snacks, Refrigerated & Frozen, International, and Foodservice segments. The Grocery & Snacks segment primarily offers shelf stable food products through various retail channels. The Refrigerated & Frozen segment provides temperature-controlled food products through various retail channels. The International segment offers food products in various temperature states through retail and foodservice channels outside of the United States. The Foodservice segment offers branded and customized food products, including meals, entrees, sauces, and various custom-manufactured culinary products packaged for restaurants and other foodservice establishments. The company sells its products under the Birds Eye, Marie Callender's, Duncan Hines, Healthy Choice, Slim Jim, Reddi-wip, Angie's, BOOMCHICKAPOP, Duke's, Earth Balance, Gardein, and Frontera brands. The company was incorporated in 1919 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
About Marzetti
Lancaster Colony Corporation engages in the manufacturing and marketing of specialty food products for the retail and foodservice channels in the United States. It operates in two segments, Retail and Foodservice. The company offers frozen garlic bread under the New York BRAND Bakery; frozen Parkerhouse style yeast and dinner rolls under the Sister Schubert's brand; salad dressings under the Marzetti, Simply Dressed, Cardini's, and Girard's brands; vegetable and fruit dips under the Marzetti brand; croutons and salad toppings under the New York BRAND Bakery, Chatham Village, and Marzetti brands; and frozen pasta under the Marzetti Frozen Pasta brand. It also manufactures and sells other products to brand license agreements, including Olive Garden dressings, Buffalo Wild Wings sauces, and Chick-fil-A sauces. The company sells its products through sales personnel, food brokers, and distributors to retailers and restaurants. Lancaster Colony Corporation was incorporated in 1961 and is based in Westerville, Ohio.
Receive News & Ratings for Conagra Brands Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Conagra Brands and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
