Head-To-Head Survey: L’Air Liquide (OTCMKTS:AIQUY) versus MonotaRO (OTCMKTS:MONOY)

MonotaRO (OTCMKTS:MONOY) and L’Air Liquide (OTCMKTS:AIQUY) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and earnings.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for MonotaRO and L’Air Liquide, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
MonotaRO	0	0	0	0	N/A
L’Air Liquide	0	0	1	0	3.00

Volatility & Risk

MonotaRO has a beta of 0.69, indicating that its share price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, L’Air Liquide has a beta of 0.91, indicating that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.1% of MonotaRO shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.0% of L’Air Liquide shares are held by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares MonotaRO and L’Air Liquide’s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
MonotaRO	$1.81 billion	3.25	$154.87 million	$0.32	36.72
L’Air Liquide	$29.88 billion	3.68	$3.33 billion	N/A	N/A

L’Air Liquide has higher revenue and earnings than MonotaRO.

Profitability

This table compares MonotaRO and L’Air Liquide’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
MonotaRO	8.59%	27.56%	18.55%
L’Air Liquide	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

MonotaRO pays an annual dividend of $0.03 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. L’Air Liquide pays an annual dividend of $0.49 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. MonotaRO pays out 9.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

L’Air Liquide beats MonotaRO on 7 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About MonotaRO

MonotaRO Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, operates an online MRO products store in Japan and internationally. It offers products in various categories, such as safety protection equipment, work clothes, and safety shoes; logistics, storage, and packing supplies; tapes; safety supplies/safety signs; office supplies; office furniture/lighting/cleaning supplies; cutting tools/abrasives; measurement/surveying supplies; work/electric/pneumatic tools; spray/oil/grease/paint/adhesion/repair/welding supplies; and agricultural materials/gardening supplies. The company also provides building hardware products, building materials, and painting interior supplies; air conditioning/electrical equipment materials/electrical materials; piping/water supply/pump/pneumatic/hydraulic equipment/hose products; mechanical parts; control equipment/solder/static electricity countermeasure supplies; screws/bolts/nails/materials; car/truck supplies; motorcycle/bicycle supplies; kitchen equipment/kitchen products/store supplies; scientific research and development/clean room supplies; and medical/long-term care products. It serves factories, construction, automobile maintenance, and other industries. The company was formerly known as Sumisho Grainger Co., Ltd. and changed its name to MonotaRO Co., Ltd. in 2006. MonotaRO Co., Ltd. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Amagasaki, Japan. MonotaRO Co., Ltd. operates as a subsidiary of Grainger Global Holdings, Inc.

About L’Air Liquide

L'Air Liquide S.A. provides gases, technologies, and services for the industrial and health sectors in Europe, the Americas, the Asia Pacific, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates in Gas & Services, Engineering & Construction, and Global Markets & Technologies segments. The Gas & Services segment comprises large industries business, which offers gas and energy solutions including oxygen, nitrogen, argon, hydrogen, and carbon monoxide, as well as operates cogeneration plants to supply steam and electricity to metals, chemicals, refining, and energy industries; and industrial merchant business line provides industrial gases, equipment, hardgoods, and associated services to materials and energy, automotive and manufacturing, food and pharmaceuticals, technology and research, and craftsmen and retail sectors. This segment also includes healthcare business, which provides medical gases, home healthcare services, medical equipment, and specialty ingredient to patients, healthcare professionals, and hospitals; and electronic business supply carrier gases, electronic specialty and advanced materials, equipment and installation, and service to semiconductor, flat panel, and photovoltaic markets. The Engineering & Construction segment designs, develops, and builds industrial gas production plants to third parties; and design and manufacture plants in traditional, renewable and alternative energy sectors. The Global Markets & Technologies segment delivers technological solutions, such as molecules, equipment, and services to energy transition and deep technology. This segment also invests in and operates biomethane production units; designs hydrogen refueling stations; and supplies gases for the offshore oil and gas platforms, offshore wind turbines, and cryogenic transportation by sea. L'Air Liquide S.A. was incorporated in 1902 and is headquartered in Paris, France.