Head-To-Head Contrast: Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage (NYSE:NGVC) & SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN)

SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN) and Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage (NYSE:NGVC) are both small-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and risk.

Dividends

SpartanNash pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. SpartanNash pays out -275.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage pays out 25.5% 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. SpartanNash has increased its dividend for 15 consecutive years and Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. SpartanNash is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Risk & Volatility

SpartanNash has a beta of 0.46, suggesting that its share price is 54% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage has a beta of 1.44, suggesting that its share price is 44% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares SpartanNash and Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SpartanNash	$9.55 billion	0.09	$300,000.00	($0.32)	-82.97
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage	$1.24 billion	0.73	$33.94 million	$1.88	20.99

Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage has lower revenue, but higher earnings than SpartanNash. SpartanNash is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for SpartanNash and Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SpartanNash	0	2	0	0	2.00
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage	0	0	0	0	0.00

SpartanNash currently has a consensus target price of $18.45, suggesting a potential downside of 30.51%. Given SpartanNash’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe SpartanNash is more favorable than Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage.

Profitability

This table compares SpartanNash and Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SpartanNash	-0.11%	8.26%	2.51%
Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage	3.31%	23.47%	6.63%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

84.6% of SpartanNash shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 32.0% of Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of SpartanNash shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 58.8% of Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage beats SpartanNash on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SpartanNash

SpartanNash Company distributes and retails grocery products in the United States of America. It operates through Wholesale and Retail segments. The Wholesale segment offers grocery products and perishable food products, including dry groceries, produce, dairy products, meat, delicatessen items, bakery goods, frozen food, seafood, floral products, general merchandise, beverages, tobacco products, health and beauty care, and pharmaceutical products to independent retailers, national accounts, food service distributors, e-commerce providers, and corporate owned retail stores. This segment offers various support services to independent retailers. The Retail segment operates retail stores, fuel centers, and pharmacies primarily under the banners of Family Fare, Martin’s Super Markets, D&W Fresh Market, VG’s Grocery, Family Fresh Market, Supermercado Nuestra Familia, Forest Hills Foods, Dillonvale IGA, and Fresh City Market. It supplies private brand products to military commissaries. The company was formerly known as Spartan Stores, Inc. and changed its name to SpartanNash Company in November 2013. SpartanNash Company was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

About Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage

Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, retails natural and organic groceries, and dietary supplements in the United States. The company’s stores offer natural and organic grocery products, such as organic produce; private label repackaged bulk products, including dried fruits, nuts, grains, granolas, teas, herbs, and spices, as well as peanut and almond butters; private label products comprising grocery staples, household products, bulk foods, and vitamins and dietary supplements, as well as organic eggs, organic flavored coffee, and organic mustard; dry, frozen, and canned groceries; meat and seafood products; dairy products, dairy substitutes, and eggs; prepared foods; bread and baked products; beverages; and beer, wine, and hard cider products. Its stores also provide name-brand supplements, as well as private label dietary supplements; body care products consisting of cosmetics, skin care, hair care, fragrance, and personal care products containing natural and organic ingredients; pet care and food products; books and handouts; household and general merchandise, including cleaning supplies, paper products, and dish and laundry soaps, as well as other common household products, such as diapers; and books and handouts. The company operates its retail stores under the Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage trademark, as well as Vitamin Cottage Natural Grocers and Health Hotline trademarks. The company also offers science-based nutrition education programs to help customers make informed health and nutrition choices. Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, Inc. was founded in 1955 and is headquartered in Lakewood, Colorado.