Head to Head Review: Taylor Devices (NASDAQ:TAYD) versus Alta Equipment Group (NYSE:ALTG)

Taylor Devices (NASDAQ:TAYD) and Alta Equipment Group (NYSE:ALTG) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, valuation and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Taylor Devices and Alta Equipment Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Taylor Devices	21.52%	15.77%	14.31%
Alta Equipment Group	-4.33%	-3,253.61%	-5.70%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Taylor Devices and Alta Equipment Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Taylor Devices	$46.29 million	3.56	$9.41 million	$3.30	15.49
Alta Equipment Group	$1.84 billion	0.10	-$80.30 million	($2.53)	-2.18

Taylor Devices has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Alta Equipment Group. Alta Equipment Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Taylor Devices, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Taylor Devices has a beta of 1, indicating that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, Alta Equipment Group has a beta of 1.82, indicating that its stock price is 82% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Taylor Devices and Alta Equipment Group, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Taylor Devices	0	2	0	0	2.00
Alta Equipment Group	1	2	2	0	2.20

Alta Equipment Group has a consensus target price of $12.17, indicating a potential upside of 120.21%. Given Alta Equipment Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Alta Equipment Group is more favorable than Taylor Devices.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

17.6% of Taylor Devices shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.6% of Alta Equipment Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.9% of Taylor Devices shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 20.5% of Alta Equipment Group shares are owned by 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.

About Taylor Devices

Taylor Devices, Inc. engages in design, development, manufacture, and marketing of shock absorption, rate control, and energy storage devices for use in machinery, equipment, and structures in the United States, Asia, and internationally. Its products include seismic dampers that are designed to mitigate the effects of earthquakes on structures; Fluidicshoks, which are compact shock absorbers primarily used in defense, aerospace, and commercial industries; and crane and industrial buffers, which are larger versions of the Fluidicshoks for industrial application on cranes and crane trolleys, truck docks, ladle and ingot cars, ore trolleys, and train car stops. The company's products also comprise self-adjusting shock absorbers that include versions of Fluidicshoks, and crane and industrial buffers, which automatically adjust to various impact conditions and are designed for high cycle application primarily in the heavy industry; liquid die springs that are used as component parts of machinery and equipment used in the manufacture of tools and dies; vibration dampers, which are primarily used by aerospace and defense industries to control the response of electronics and optical systems subjected to air, ship, or spacecraft vibration; machined springs used in the aerospace applications; and custom actuators for special aerospace and defense applications. It markets its products through a network of sales representatives and distributors. The company was incorporated in 1955 and is headquartered in North Tonawanda, New York.

About Alta Equipment Group

Alta Equipment Group Inc. owns and operates integrated equipment dealership platforms in the United States. It operates through three segments: Material Handling, Construction Equipment, and Master Distribution. The company operates a branch network that sells, rents, and provides parts and service support for various categories of specialized equipment, including lift trucks and other material handling equipment, heavy and compact earthmoving equipment, crushing and screening equipment, environmental processing equipment, cranes and aerial work platforms, paving and asphalt equipment, and other construction equipment and related products. It also offers repair and maintenance services for its equipment. In addition, the company designs and builds warehouses; provides automated equipment installation and system integration solutions; and distributes environmental processing equipment. It serves various manufacturing, food and beverage, automotive, municipal/government, education, pharmaceutical and medical, wholesale and retail distribution, construction, agriculture, road building, mining, recycling, and waste management sectors. Alta Equipment Group Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Livonia, Michigan.