Cal-Maine Foods (NASDAQ:CALM – Get Free Report) and GrowGeneration (NASDAQ:GRWG – Get Free Report) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and risk.
Profitability
This table compares Cal-Maine Foods and GrowGeneration’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Cal-Maine Foods | 28.63% | 54.81% | 44.18% |
| GrowGeneration | -29.84% | -34.92% | -24.04% |
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Cal-Maine Foods and GrowGeneration”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Cal-Maine Foods | $4.26 billion | 1.27 | $1.22 billion | $24.95 | 4.43 |
| GrowGeneration | $188.87 million | 0.46 | -$49.51 million | ($0.82) | -1.77 |
Cal-Maine Foods has higher revenue and earnings than GrowGeneration. GrowGeneration is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Cal-Maine Foods, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
84.7% of Cal-Maine Foods shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 36.0% of GrowGeneration shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.5% of Cal-Maine Foods shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.6% of GrowGeneration shares are owned by company 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 Ratings
This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Cal-Maine Foods and GrowGeneration, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Cal-Maine Foods | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| GrowGeneration | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
Cal-Maine Foods currently has a consensus target price of $110.00, suggesting a potential downside of 0.59%. GrowGeneration has a consensus target price of $2.50, suggesting a potential upside of 72.41%. Given GrowGeneration’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe GrowGeneration is more favorable than Cal-Maine Foods.
Volatility & Risk
Cal-Maine Foods has a beta of 0.19, indicating that its stock price is 81% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, GrowGeneration has a beta of 3.29, indicating that its stock price is 229% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Cal-Maine Foods beats GrowGeneration on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Cal-Maine Foods
Cal-Maine Foods, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, produces, grades, packages, markets, and distributes shell eggs. The company offers specialty shell eggs, such as nutritionally enhanced, cage free, organic, free-range, pasture-raised, and brown eggs under the Egg-Land's Best, Land O' Lakes, Farmhouse Eggs, Sunups, Sunny Meadow, and 4Grain brand names. It sells its products to various customers, including national and regional grocery store chains, club stores, independent supermarkets, foodservice distributors, and egg product consumers primarily in the southwestern, southeastern, mid-western, and mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. Cal-Maine Foods, Inc. was founded in 1957 and is headquartered in Ridgeland, Mississippi.
About GrowGeneration
GrowGeneration Corp., through its subsidiaries, owns and operates retail hydroponic and organic gardening stores in the United States. The company engages in the marketing and distribution of nutrients, additives, growing media, lighting, and environmental control systems, as well as other indoor and outdoor growing products. It operates a chain of stores in California, Colorado, Michigan, Maine, Oklahoma, Oregon, Washington, Montana, New York, Ohio, Mississippi, Missouri, Arizona, Rhode Island, Florida, Massachusetts, Virginia, New Jersey, and New Mexico, as well as growgeneration.com, an online superstore for cultivators, a wholesale business for resellers, HRG Distribution, and benching, racking, and storage solutions and MMI. The company was formerly known as Easylife Corp. GrowGeneration Corp. was founded in 2008 and is based in Greenwood Village, Colorado.
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