Reviewing Hf Foods Group (NASDAQ:HFFG) & Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO)

Hf Foods Group (NASDAQ:HFFG) and Flowers Foods (NYSE:FLO) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership and earnings.

Volatility & Risk

Hf Foods Group has a beta of 0.43, suggesting that its share price is 57% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Flowers Foods has a beta of 0.33, suggesting that its share price is 67% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

24.0% of Hf Foods Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.5% of Flowers Foods shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.0% of Hf Foods Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 11.6% of Flowers Foods shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Hf Foods Group and Flowers Foods’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hf Foods Group	-3.71%	8.01%	3.33%
Flowers Foods	3.78%	16.35%	5.65%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Hf Foods Group and Flowers Foods”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hf Foods Group	$1.23 billion	0.07	-$48.51 million	($0.86)	-1.81
Flowers Foods	$5.10 billion	0.48	$248.12 million	$0.92	12.72

Flowers Foods has higher revenue and earnings than Hf Foods Group. Hf Foods Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Flowers Foods, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Hf Foods Group and Flowers Foods, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hf Foods Group	1	0	1	0	2.00
Flowers Foods	1	4	0	0	1.80

Hf Foods Group currently has a consensus target price of $7.00, suggesting a potential upside of 348.72%. Flowers Foods has a consensus target price of $13.67, suggesting a potential upside of 16.76%. Given Hf Foods Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Hf Foods Group is more favorable than Flowers Foods.

Summary

Flowers Foods beats Hf Foods Group on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hf Foods Group

HF Foods Group Inc., through its subsidiaries, markets and distributes Asian specialty food, seafood, fresh produce, frozen and dry food, and non-food products to Asian and Chinese restaurants, and other foodservice customers in the United States. The company offers seafood, including lobsters, shrimp, crabs, scallops, and fish; Asian specialty food items, including noodles, rice, dried mushrooms and beans, sauces and seasonings, and spring rolls, as well as canned products, such as preserved vegetables, bamboo shoots, and water chestnuts; and meat and poultry products, including beef, pork, chicken, and duck. It also provides fresh produce products, such as vegetables and fruits; commodities comprising oil, flour, sugar, and salt; and packaging and other items including take-out accessories. HF Foods Group Inc. is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada.

About Flowers Foods

Flowers Foods, Inc. produces and markets packaged bakery food products in the United States. Its principal products include fresh breads, buns, rolls, snack items, bagels, English muffins, and tortillas, as well as frozen breads and rolls under the Nature's Own, Dave's Killer Bread, Wonder, Canyon Bakehouse, Mrs. Freshley's, and Tastykake brand names. The company distributes its products through a direct-store-delivery distribution and a warehouse delivery system, as well as operates bakeries. Its customers include national and regional restaurants, institutions and foodservice distributors, and retail in-store bakeries; wholesale distributors; mass merchandisers, supermarkets, vending outlets, and convenience stores; quick-serve chains, food wholesalers, institutions, dollar stores, and vending companies; and public health care, military commissaries, and prisons, and other governmental institutions. The company was formerly known as Flowers Industries and changed its name to Flowers Foods, Inc. in 2001. Flowers Foods, Inc. was founded in 1919 and is headquartered in Thomasville, Georgia.