Comparing Limoneira (NASDAQ:LMNR) and CHS (NASDAQ:CHSCP)

Limoneira (NASDAQ:LMNR) and CHS (NASDAQ:CHSCP) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership and risk.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

64.4% of Limoneira shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.9% of Limoneira shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.3% of CHS shares are owned 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.

Profitability

This table compares Limoneira and CHS’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Limoneira	-0.96%	-0.90%	-0.57%
CHS	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Limoneira and CHS, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Limoneira	0	0	2	0	3.00
CHS	0	0	0	0	0.00

Limoneira presently has a consensus target price of $25.50, suggesting a potential upside of 68.37%. Given Limoneira’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Limoneira is more favorable than CHS.

Risk and Volatility

Limoneira has a beta of 0.45, meaning that its share price is 55% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CHS has a beta of 0.24, meaning that its share price is 76% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Limoneira and CHS”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Limoneira	$191.50 million	1.43	$7.72 million	($0.14)	-108.18
CHS	$39.26 billion	N/A	$1.10 billion	N/A	N/A

CHS has higher revenue and earnings than Limoneira.

Summary

Limoneira beats CHS on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Limoneira

Limoneira Company operates as an agribusiness and real estate development company in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three divisions: Agribusiness, Rental Operations, and Real Estate Development. It grows, processes, packs, markets, and sells lemons. The company also grows avocado, oranges, and specialty citrus and other crops, including Moro blood oranges, Cara Cara oranges, Valencia oranges, Minneola tangelos, Star Ruby grapefruit, pummelos, and wine grapes. It has approximately 3,500 acres of lemons planted primarily in Ventura, Tulare, San Luis Obispo, and San Bernardino Counties in California; and Jujuy, Argentina, as well in Yuma County, Arizona, and La Serena, Chile; 1,200 acres of avocados planted in Ventura County; 100 acres of oranges planted in Tulare County, California; and 400 acres of specialty citrus and other crops. In addition, the company rents residential housing units and commercial office buildings, as well as leases approximately 400 acres of its land to third-party agricultural tenants. Further, it is involved in the organic recycling operations; and development of land parcels, multi-family housing, and single-family homes. The company markets and sells its lemons directly to food service, wholesale, and retail customers; avocados, oranges, specialty citrus, and other crops to third-party packinghouses; and wine grapes to wine producers. Limoneira Company was founded in 1893 and is headquartered in Santa Paula, California.

About CHS

CHS Inc., an integrated agricultural company, engages in the provision of grains, food, and energy resources to businesses and consumers worldwide. It is involved in the operation of petroleum refineries and pipelines; the supply, marketing, and distribution of refined fuels; the blending, sale, and distribution of lubricants; and the supply of propane, asphalt, and other natural gas liquids. The company also processes and sells crude oil into refined petroleum products under the Cenex brand name to member cooperatives and other independent retailers through a network of approximately 1,500 sites and provides transportation services. In addition, it processes and markets grains and oilseeds and offers seeds, crop nutrients, crop protection products, animal feed, animal health products, refined and renewable fuels, as well as refined oils, meal, soy flour, and processed sunflower products. Additionally, it produces and distributes edible oil-based products. CHS Inc. was formerly known as Cenex Harvest States Cooperatives and changed its name to CHS Inc. in August 2003. The company was incorporated in 1936 and is based in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota.