Comparing FMC (NYSE:FMC) & Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO)

FMC (NYSE:FMC) and Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares FMC and Mission Produce’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
FMC	7.97%	9.12%	3.46%
Mission Produce	2.63%	7.82%	4.56%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for FMC and Mission Produce, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
FMC	1	8	5	0	2.29
Mission Produce	0	0	2	0	3.00

FMC presently has a consensus target price of $50.15, suggesting a potential upside of 16.67%. Mission Produce has a consensus target price of $15.50, suggesting a potential upside of 30.80%. Given Mission Produce’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Mission Produce is more favorable than FMC.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

91.9% of FMC shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 63.6% of Mission Produce shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of FMC shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 35.4% of Mission Produce shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares FMC and Mission Produce”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
FMC	$4.25 billion	1.26	$341.10 million	$2.62	16.41
Mission Produce	$1.23 billion	0.68	$36.70 million	$0.50	23.70

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

Risk and Volatility

FMC has a beta of 0.76, meaning that its share price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Mission Produce has a beta of 0.56, meaning that its share price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

FMC beats Mission Produce on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About FMC

FMC Corporation, an agricultural sciences company, provides crop protection, plant health, and professional pest and turf management products. It develops, markets, and sells crop protection chemicals that includes insecticides, herbicides, and fungicides; and biologicals, crop nutrition, and seed treatment products, which are used in agriculture to enhance crop yield and quality by controlling a range of insects, weeds, and diseases, as well as in non-agricultural markets for pest control. The company markets its products through its own sales organization and through alliance partners, independent distributors, and sales representatives. It operates in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia. The company was founded in 1883 and is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

About Mission Produce

Mission Produce, Inc. engages in the sourcing, farming, packaging, marketing, and distribution of avocados, mangoes, and blueberries to food retailers, distributors, and foodservice customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments, Marketing and Distribution; International Farming; and Blueberries. It also provides ripening, bagging, custom packing, logistical management, and quality assurance services. In addition, the company offers merchandising and promotional support, and insights on market trends, and training services. Mission Produce, Inc. was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Oxnard, California.