Critical Comparison: Cibus (NASDAQ:CBUS) & Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP)

Cibus (NASDAQ:CBUS) and Fresh Del Monte Produce (NYSE:FDP) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, institutional ownership, valuation and profitability.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Cibus and Fresh Del Monte Produce”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cibus	$3.64 million	27.85	-$127.08 million	($2.98)	-0.49
Fresh Del Monte Produce	$4.32 billion	0.46	$90.70 million	$1.88	22.46

Fresh Del Monte Produce has higher revenue and earnings than Cibus. Cibus is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Fresh Del Monte Produce, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Cibus has a beta of 1.93, meaning that its stock price is 93% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fresh Del Monte Produce has a beta of 0.28, meaning that its stock price is 72% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Cibus and Fresh Del Monte Produce, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cibus	1	1	1	0	2.00
Fresh Del Monte Produce	0	0	1	0	3.00

Cibus presently has a consensus target price of $9.00, indicating a potential upside of 514.33%. Given Cibus’ higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Cibus is more favorable than Fresh Del Monte Produce.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

33.8% of Cibus shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.8% of Fresh Del Monte Produce shares are owned by institutional investors. 31.2% of Cibus shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 31.6% of Fresh Del Monte Produce shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Cibus and Fresh Del Monte Produce’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cibus	-3,492.30%	-174.58%	-29.48%
Fresh Del Monte Produce	2.10%	7.63%	5.01%

Summary

Fresh Del Monte Produce beats Cibus on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Cibus

Cibus, Inc., a agricultural biotechnology company, develops and licenses plant traits to seed companies for royalties. The company primarily focus on trait productivity in two areas, including productivity traits that enable farmers to have higher yields and reduce the use of the crop protection chemicals and fertilizers; and sustainable ingredients that enable corporations to replace ingredients that are fossil fuel based or whose production results in increased greenhouse gases. Cibus, Inc. is based in San Diego, California.

About Fresh Del Monte Produce

Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc., through its subsidiaries, produces, markets, and distributes fresh and fresh-cut fruits and vegetables in North America, Central America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Fresh and Value-Added Products, Banana, and Other Products and Services. The company offers pineapples, fresh-cut fruit, fresh-cut vegetables, melons, and vegetables; non-tropical fruits, such as grapes, apples, citrus, blueberries, strawberries, pears, peaches, plums, nectarines, cherries, and kiwis; other fruit and vegetables, and avocados; and prepared fruit and vegetables, juices, other beverages, and meals and snacks. It also engages in the sale of poultry and meat products; and third-party freight services business. The company offers its products under the Del Monte brand, as well as under other brands, such as UTC, Rosy, Just Juice, Fruitini, Pinkglow, Del Monte Zero, Honeyglow, Rubyglow, Honey Miniglow, Bananinis, Mann, Mann’s Logo, Arcadian Harvest, Nourish Bowls, Broccolini, Caulilini, Better Burger Leaf, Romaleaf, and other regional brands. It markets and distributes its products to retail stores, club stores, convenience stores, wholesalers, distributors, and foodservice operators. Fresh Del Monte Produce Inc. was founded in 1886 and is based in George Town, Cayman Islands.