Critical Survey: Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) & Guangshen Railway (OTCMKTS:GSHHY)

Guangshen Railway (OTCMKTS:GSHHY) and Old Dominion Freight Line (NASDAQ:ODFL) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and risk.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

77.8% of Old Dominion Freight Line shares are owned by institutional investors. 71.4% of Guangshen Railway shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.2% of Old Dominion Freight Line shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Guangshen Railway and Old Dominion Freight Line, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Guangshen Railway	0	0	0	0	0.00
Old Dominion Freight Line	2	13	9	1	2.36

Old Dominion Freight Line has a consensus price target of $226.55, indicating a potential upside of 14.22%. Given Old Dominion Freight Line’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Old Dominion Freight Line is more favorable than Guangshen Railway.

Profitability

This table compares Guangshen Railway and Old Dominion Freight Line’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Guangshen Railway	0.44%	0.30%	0.23%
Old Dominion Freight Line	19.44%	24.87%	19.47%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Guangshen Railway and Old Dominion Freight Line”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Guangshen Railway	$2.37 billion	0.55	-$80.84 million	N/A	N/A
Old Dominion Freight Line	$5.50 billion	7.48	$1.02 billion	$5.19	38.22

Old Dominion Freight Line has higher revenue and earnings than Guangshen Railway.

Risk and Volatility

Guangshen Railway has a beta of 0.66, meaning that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Old Dominion Freight Line has a beta of 1.18, meaning that its stock price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Old Dominion Freight Line beats Guangshen Railway on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Guangshen Railway

Guangshen Railway Company Limited engages in the railway passenger and freight transportation business in the People's Republic of China. Its passenger transportation services include the operation of Guangzhou-Shenzhen inter-city express trains, long-distance trains, and Guangzhou-Hong Kong city through trains. The company's freight transportation services comprise the transportation of full load and single load cargos, containers, bulky and heavy cargo, dangerous goods, perishable goods, and oversized cargo. It also provides railway network usage services; and other transportation-related services, such as railway operation, locomotive and passenger car leasing, passenger service, and luggage transportation services, as well as sells food, beverages, and merchandise on board the trains and in railway stations. In addition, the company is involved in train repair, on-board catering, materials and supplies sale, goods sale, cargo loading and unloading, and other businesses related to railway transportation. Further, it offers warehousing, hotel management, and real estate construction services. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is based in Shenzhen, the People's Republic of China.

About Old Dominion Freight Line

Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. operates as a less-than-truckload motor carrier in the United States and North America. The company offers regional, inter-regional, and national less-than-truckload services, as well as expedited transportation. It also provides various value-added services, including container drayage, truckload brokerage, and supply chain consulting. As of December 31, 2023, it owned and operated 10,791 tractors, 31,233 linehaul trailers, and 15,181 pickup and delivery trailers; 46 fleet maintenance centers; and 257 service centers. Old Dominion Freight Line, Inc. was founded in 1934 and is headquartered in Thomasville, North Carolina.