Comparing Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX) & American Biltrite (OTCMKTS:ABLT)

Quanex Building Products (NYSE:NX) and American Biltrite (OTCMKTS:ABLT) are both small-cap construction companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, earnings, profitability, dividends, risk and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Quanex Building Products and American Biltrite, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Quanex Building Products	2	0	1	0	1.67
American Biltrite	0	0	0	0	0.00

Quanex Building Products currently has a consensus price target of $28.00, suggesting a potential upside of 36.95%. Given Quanex Building Products’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Quanex Building Products is more favorable than American Biltrite.

Risk & Volatility

Quanex Building Products has a beta of 0.93, indicating that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, American Biltrite has a beta of -0.2, indicating that its share price is 120% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

97.5% of Quanex Building Products shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.9% of Quanex Building Products shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Quanex Building Products and American Biltrite’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Quanex Building Products	-13.00%	12.24%	4.73%
American Biltrite	-4.16%	-34.23%	-6.13%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Quanex Building Products and American Biltrite”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Quanex Building Products	$1.84 billion	0.51	-$250.81 million	($5.26)	-3.89
American Biltrite	$188.74 million	0.01	-$2.64 million	($229.80)	-0.36

American Biltrite has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Quanex Building Products. Quanex Building Products is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than American Biltrite, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Quanex Building Products beats American Biltrite on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Quanex Building Products

Quanex Building Products Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides components for the fenestration industry in the United States, rest of Europe, Canada, Asia, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company operates through three segments: North American Fenestration, European Fenestration, and North American Cabinet Components. It offers flexible insulating glass spacers, extruded vinyl profiles, window and door screens, and precision-formed metal and wood products, as well as cabinet doors and other components for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) in the kitchen and bathroom cabinet industry. In addition, the company provides various non-fenestration components and products, including solar panel sealants, trim moldings, vinyl decking, fencing, water retention barriers, and conservatory roof components. It sells its products to OEMs in the building products industry through sales representatives, direct sales force, distributors, and independent sales agents. Quanex Building Products Corporation was founded in 1927 and is based in Houston, Texas.

About American Biltrite

American Biltrite Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides tape, jewelry, flooring, and rubber products worldwide. The company produces and offers pressure sensitive tapes, films, and protective sheeting under the American Biltrite and Ideal brands, which are used in various markets, such as automotive and transportation; construction; shoe/footwear; graphic arts, print, and signage; and various other industrial and consumer applications. It also manufactures and distributes commercial flooring primarily for healthcare, educational, and institutional sectors; and performance sheet rubber in North America, as well as designs and supplies fashion jewelry to department stores under the brands of Guess, T Tahari, Robert Rose, Berry, and Jessica McClintock. The company sells its tape products through sales organizations, distributors, and select manufacturers’ representatives. American Biltrite Inc. was founded in 1908 and is based in Wellesley Hills, Massachusetts.