Reviewing BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) and J. Sainsbury (OTCMKTS:JSAIY)

J. Sainsbury (OTCMKTS:JSAIY) and BJ’s Wholesale Club (NYSE:BJ) are both large-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares J. Sainsbury and BJ’s Wholesale Club”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
J. Sainsbury	$45.10 billion	0.22	$526.74 million	N/A	N/A
BJ’s Wholesale Club	$21.46 billion	0.57	$578.38 million	$4.35	22.21

BJ’s Wholesale Club has lower revenue, but higher earnings than J. Sainsbury.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for J. Sainsbury and BJ’s Wholesale Club, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
J. Sainsbury	0	5	1	0	2.17
BJ’s Wholesale Club	1	8	10	0	2.47

BJ’s Wholesale Club has a consensus price target of $105.33, suggesting a potential upside of 9.03%. Given BJ’s Wholesale Club’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe BJ’s Wholesale Club is more favorable than J. Sainsbury.

Profitability

This table compares J. Sainsbury and BJ’s Wholesale Club’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
J. Sainsbury	N/A	N/A	N/A
BJ’s Wholesale Club	2.62%	26.67%	7.59%

Risk and Volatility

J. Sainsbury has a beta of 1.07, suggesting that its share price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BJ’s Wholesale Club has a beta of 0.21, suggesting that its share price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

98.6% of BJ’s Wholesale Club shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.1% of BJ’s Wholesale Club shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

BJ’s Wholesale Club beats J. Sainsbury on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About J. Sainsbury

J Sainsbury plc, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the food, general merchandise and clothing retailing, and financial services activities in the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland. It operates through three segments: Retail Food, Retail General Merchandise and Clothing, and Financial Services. The company operates various store formats, including convenience stores and supermarkets. It is also involved in the online grocery and general merchandise operations. In addition, it offers financial services, such as credit cards, scorecards, and personal loans; and home, car, pet, travel, and life insurance products. J Sainsbury plc was founded in 1869 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

About BJ’s Wholesale Club

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings, Inc. engages in the operation of membership warehouse clubs. Its product categories include grocery, household and pet, television and electronics, furniture, computer and tablets, patio and outdoor living, lawn and garden, baby and kids, toys, home, health and beauty, appliances, and jewelry. The company was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Marlborough, MA.