Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI – Get Free Report) and Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW – Get Free Report) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings and valuation.
Institutional and Insider Ownership
85.5% of Service Corporation International shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.1% of Matthews International shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.4% of Service Corporation International shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.1% of Matthews International shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Service Corporation International and Matthews International, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Service Corporation International | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 3.00 |
| Matthews International | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
Profitability
This table compares Service Corporation International and Matthews International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Service Corporation International | 12.58% | 32.35% | 3.05% |
| Matthews International | -4.62% | 11.04% | 2.66% |
Dividends
Service Corporation International pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Matthews International pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Service Corporation International pays out 35.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Matthews International pays out -39.2% 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. Service Corporation International has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years and Matthews International has raised its dividend for 30 consecutive years. Matthews International is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Volatility & Risk
Service Corporation International has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Matthews International has a beta of 1.27, meaning that its stock price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares Service Corporation International and Matthews International”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Service Corporation International | $4.19 billion | 2.78 | $518.65 million | $3.64 | 22.47 |
| Matthews International | $1.80 billion | 0.44 | -$59.66 million | ($2.55) | -9.99 |
Service Corporation International has higher revenue and earnings than Matthews International. Matthews International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Service Corporation International, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Service Corporation International beats Matthews International on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Service Corporation International
Service Corp. International engages in the provision of funeral goods and services. It operates through the Funeral and Cemetery segments. The Funeral segment offers services related to cremations, including the use of home facilities and motor vehicles, arranging and directing services, removal, preparation, embalming, memorialization, and catering. The Cemetery segment provides property interment rights, including lawn crypts, mausoleum spaces, niches, and interment options. The company was founded by Robert L. Waltrip in July 1962 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.
About Matthews International
Matthews International Corporation provides brand solutions, memorialization products, and industrial technologies worldwide. It operates through three segments: Memorialization, Industrial Technologies, and SGK Brand Solutions. The Memorialization segment provides bronze and granite memorials, upright granite memorials and monuments, concrete burial vaults, cremation memorialization products, granite benches, flower vases, crypt plates and letters, cremation urns, niche units, cemetery features, and statues, as well as bronze plaques, letters, emblems, vases, lights and photo ceramics, granite monuments, mausoleums, crypts, and flush memorials. The Industrial Technologies segment designs, manufactures, services, and distributes high-tech custom energy storage solutions, and product identification and warehouse automation technologies and solutions, including order fulfillment systems for identifying, tracking, picking, and conveying consumer and industrial products. This segment also provides engineered calendaring, laminating, and coating equipment; stand-alone marking products; laser and ink-jet printing systems; and spare parts, calendar, and coating-roller refurbishing and retrofits. The SGK Brand solutions segment provides brand management, pre-media services, printing plates and cylinders, imaging services, digital asset management, merchandising display systems, and marketing and design services for the consumer goods and retail industries. The company was founded in 1850 and is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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