DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) versus Alta Equipment Group (NYSE:ALTG) Critical Survey

DNOW (NYSE:DNOW) and Alta Equipment Group (NYSE:ALTG) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership and profitability.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

97.6% of DNOW shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.6% of Alta Equipment Group shares are held by institutional investors. 2.7% of DNOW shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 19.2% of Alta Equipment Group shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

DNOW has a beta of 0.79, meaning that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Alta Equipment Group has a beta of 1.57, meaning that its share price is 57% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for DNOW and Alta Equipment Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
DNOW	2	0	2	0	2.00
Alta Equipment Group	1	2	2	0	2.20

DNOW presently has a consensus price target of $17.00, suggesting a potential upside of 38.38%. Alta Equipment Group has a consensus price target of $12.17, suggesting a potential upside of 109.45%. Given Alta Equipment Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Alta Equipment Group is more favorable than DNOW.

Profitability

This table compares DNOW and Alta Equipment Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
DNOW	-2.66%	7.26%	4.68%
Alta Equipment Group	-4.37%	-341.70%	-5.63%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares DNOW and Alta Equipment Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
DNOW	$2.82 billion	0.81	-$89.00 million	($0.29)	-42.36
Alta Equipment Group	$1.84 billion	0.10	-$80.30 million	($2.56)	-2.27

Alta Equipment Group has lower revenue, but higher earnings than DNOW. DNOW is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Alta Equipment Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

DNOW beats Alta Equipment Group on 7 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About DNOW

DNOW Inc. distributes downstream energy and industrial products for petroleum refining, chemical processing, LNG terminals, power generation utilities, and customer on-site locations in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company provides consumable maintenance, repair, and operating supplies; pipes, manual and automated valves, fittings, flanges, gaskets, fasteners, electrical instrumentations, artificial lift, pumping solutions, valve actuation and modular process, and measurement and control equipment; and mill supplies, tools, safety supplies, and personal protective equipment, as well as artificial lift systems, coatings, and miscellaneous expendable items. It also offers original equipment manufacturer equipment, including pumps, generator sets, air compressors, dryers, blowers, mixers, and valves; modular oil and gas tank battery solutions; and application systems, work processes, parts integration, optimization solutions, and after-sales support services. In addition, the company provides supply chain and materials management; inventory planning and management, procurement, and warehouse management, as well as solutions for logistics, point of issue technology, project management, business process, and performance metrics reporting services. It serves customers in the upstream, midstream, and downstream sectors of the energy industry, including drilling contractors, well-servicing companies, independent and national oil and gas companies, midstream operators, and refineries, as well as petrochemical, chemical, utilities, RNG facilities, and other downstream energy processors; and industrial and manufacturing companies. The company was formerly known as NOW Inc. and changed its name to DNOW Inc. in January 2024. DNOW Inc. was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Alta Equipment Group

Alta Equipment Group Inc. owns and operates integrated equipment dealership platforms in the United States. It operates through three segments: Material Handling, Construction Equipment, and Master Distribution. The company operates a branch network that sells, rents, and provides parts and service support for various categories of specialized equipment, including lift trucks and other material handling equipment, heavy and compact earthmoving equipment, crushing and screening equipment, environmental processing equipment, cranes and aerial work platforms, paving and asphalt equipment, and other construction equipment and related products. It also offers repair and maintenance services for its equipment. In addition, the company designs and builds warehouses; provides automated equipment installation and system integration solutions; and distributes environmental processing equipment. It serves various manufacturing, food and beverage, automotive, municipal/government, education, pharmaceutical and medical, wholesale and retail distribution, construction, agriculture, road building, mining, recycling, and waste management sectors. Alta Equipment Group Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Livonia, Michigan.