Head to Head Review: Brunello Cucinelli (OTCMKTS:BCUCY) and Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG)

Brunello Cucinelli (OTCMKTS:BCUCY) and Signet Jewelers (NYSE:SIG) are both consumer cyclical companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Brunello Cucinelli and Signet Jewelers, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Brunello Cucinelli	0	2	2	0	2.50
Signet Jewelers	0	3	1	0	2.25

Signet Jewelers has a consensus price target of $84.20, indicating a potential upside of 16.07%. Given Signet Jewelers’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Signet Jewelers is more favorable than Brunello Cucinelli.

Profitability

This table compares Brunello Cucinelli and Signet Jewelers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Brunello Cucinelli	N/A	N/A	N/A
Signet Jewelers	6.47%	34.59%	8.40%

Dividends

Brunello Cucinelli pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.1%. Signet Jewelers pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Brunello Cucinelli pays out 15.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Signet Jewelers pays out 10.5% 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. Signet Jewelers has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Signet Jewelers is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Brunello Cucinelli and Signet Jewelers’ top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Brunello Cucinelli	N/A	N/A	N/A	$0.24	173.47
Signet Jewelers	$7.84 billion	0.42	$376.70 million	$8.79	8.25

Signet Jewelers has higher revenue and earnings than Brunello Cucinelli. Signet Jewelers is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Brunello Cucinelli, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Signet Jewelers beats Brunello Cucinelli on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Brunello Cucinelli

Brunello Cucinelli S.p.A., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the production and sale of clothing, accessories, and lifestyle products in Italy, Europe, North America, Japan, and China. The company offers women's collection, including coats and jackets, blazers, knitwear, suits, dresses, t-shirts and tops, shirts, skirts, pants, denim, travel wear; sneakers, heels, boots, loafers, sandals, flat shoes; jewelry, scarves, other accessories; mini bags and clutches; crossbody bags and backpacks; and handbags and shoppers. It also provides men's collection, such as coats and jackets, knitwear, blazers, suits, tuxedos, t-shirts and polos, shirts, pants, denims, travel wear; sneakers, lace-ups, loafers; leather goods, bags, hats, belts, scarves; other accessories; and kids collections. In addition, the company offers lifestyle products, which include throw and blanket, cushion, studio products, candle and fragrance, travel essential, décor sets, leisure wear, kitchen and table ware, and ceramic creation products. It manages and operates directly operated stores and wholesale monobrand boutiques. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Solomeo, Italy. Brunello Cucinelli S.p.A. is a subsidiary of Foro delle Arti S.r.l.

About Signet Jewelers

Signet Jewelers Limited operates as a diamond jewelry retailer. It operates through three segments: North America, International, and Other. The North America segment operates jewelry stores in jewelry stores in malls, mall-based kiosks, and off-mall locations in the United States and Canada primarily under the Kay Jewelers, Kay Jewelers Outlet, Jared The Galleria Of Jewelry, Jared Vault, Zales Jewelers, Zales Outlet, Diamonds Direct, James Allen, Banter by Piercing Pagoda, and Peoples Jewellers names, as well as operates online through its digital banners, James Allen and Blue Nile. This segment also engages in jewelry subscription business. The International segment operates stores in shopping malls and off-mall locations primarily under the H.Samuel and Ernest Jones brands in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland, and Channel Islands. The Other segment is involved in the purchase and conversion of rough diamonds to polished stones, as well as the provision of diamond polishing services. Signet Jewelers Limited is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.