Financial Comparison: CRH (NYSE:CRH) vs. Smith-Midland (NASDAQ:SMID)

Smith-Midland (NASDAQ:SMID) and CRH (NYSE:CRH) are both materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends, risk and profitability.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Smith-Midland and CRH”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Smith-Midland	$93.40 million	1.29	$12.51 million	$1.45	15.62
CRH	$37.45 billion	1.48	$3.73 billion	$5.67	14.73

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

49.9% of Smith-Midland shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.5% of CRH shares are held by institutional investors. 3.8% of Smith-Midland shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of CRH shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Smith-Midland and CRH, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Smith-Midland	0	1	0	0	2.00
CRH	0	1	18	1	3.00

CRH has a consensus price target of $127.61, suggesting a potential upside of 52.78%. Given CRH’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe CRH is more favorable than Smith-Midland.

Profitability

This table compares Smith-Midland and CRH’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Smith-Midland	8.59%	14.06%	8.75%
CRH	9.93%	15.76%	6.64%

Volatility & Risk

Smith-Midland has a beta of 1.67, suggesting that its stock price is 67% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CRH has a beta of 1.31, suggesting that its stock price is 31% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

CRH beats Smith-Midland on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Smith-Midland

Smith-Midland Corporation invents, develops, manufactures, markets, leases, licenses, sells, and installs precast concrete products and systems in the United States. It offers SlenderWall lightweight construction panel, lightweight exterior cladding used for the exterior walls of buildings; Sierra Wall that provides sound and sight barrier for use alongside highways around residential, industrial, and commercial properties; J-J Hooks highway safety barriers, used on roadways to separate lanes of traffic in construction work zone or traffic control purposes; Easi-Set precast building and Easi-Span expandable precast buildings, used in housing communications operations, traffic control systems, and mechanical and electrical stations; Easi-Set utility, vaults for house equipment, such as cable, telephone, or traffic signal equipment, and for underground storage, as well as custom-built utility vaults for special needs; SoftSound soundwall panels, it absorb highway noise; Beach Prisms erosion control modules for seawalls and jetties; and H2Out secondary drainage systems for panelized exterior cladding. It licenses its proprietary products in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Belgium, Mexico, and Trinidad. The company markets its products through in-house sales force and independent sales representatives to contractors performing public and private construction contracts, such as construction of commercial buildings, public and private roads and highways, airports, and municipal utilities; and federal, state, and local transportation authorities. It serves its products to construction, highway, utilities, and farming industries. Smith-Midland Corporation was founded in 1960 and is based in Midland, Virginia.

About CRH

CRH plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides building materials solutions in Ireland and internationally. It operates through four segments: Americas Materials Solutions, Americas Building Solutions, Europe Materials Solutions, and Europe Building Solutions. The company provides solutions for the construction and maintenance of public infrastructure and commercial and residential buildings; and produces and sells aggregates, cement, readymixed concrete, and asphalt, as well as provides paving and construction services. It also manufactures, supplies, and delivers solutions for the built environment in communities across North America; and offers building and infrastructure solutions serving complex critical utility infrastructure, such as water, energy, transportation, and telecommunications projects, and outdoor living solutions for enhancing private and public spaces. In addition, the company combines materials, products, and services to produce a wide range of architectural and infrastructural solutions for use in the building and renovation of critical utility infrastructure, commercial and residential buildings, and outdoor living spaces for the built environment. Further, it produces and supplies precast and pre-stressed concrete products comprising floor and wall elements, beams, vaults, pipes, and manholes; granite, limestone, and sandstone; concrete and polymer-based products, such as underground vaults, drainage systems, utility enclosures, and modular precast structures; engineered steel, polymer-based anchoring, fixing, and connecting solutions; concrete masonry, hardscape and related products, including pavers, blocks and curbs, retaining walls, and slabs; and fencing and railing systems, composite decking, lawn and garden products, and packaged concrete mixes. The company was founded in 1936 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.