Financial Review: Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) versus J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM)

Mission Produce (NASDAQ:AVO) and J. M. Smucker (NYSE:SJM) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Mission Produce and J. M. Smucker’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mission Produce	0.12%	5.91%	3.41%
J. M. Smucker	2.51%	19.85%	6.76%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Mission Produce and J. M. Smucker, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mission Produce	1	1	4	1	2.71
J. M. Smucker	0	7	11	0	2.61

Mission Produce presently has a consensus price target of $16.00, suggesting a potential upside of 39.01%. J. M. Smucker has a consensus price target of $136.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1.91%. Given Mission Produce’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Mission Produce is more favorable than J. M. Smucker.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

63.6% of Mission Produce shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.7% of J. M. Smucker shares are owned by institutional investors. 30.8% of Mission Produce shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.8% of J. M. Smucker shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Mission Produce and J. M. Smucker”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mission Produce	$1.34 billion	0.75	$37.70 million	$0.03	383.67
J. M. Smucker	$9.05 billion	1.57	-$138.70 million	$2.14	62.36

Mission Produce has higher earnings, but lower revenue than J. M. Smucker. J. M. Smucker is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Mission Produce, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Mission Produce has a beta of 0.45, suggesting that its share price is 55% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, J. M. Smucker has a beta of 0.26, suggesting that its share price is 74% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

J. M. Smucker beats Mission Produce on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mission Produce

Mission Produce, Inc. engages in the sourcing, farming, packaging, marketing, and distribution of avocados, mangoes, and blueberries to food retailers, distributors, and foodservice customers in the United States and internationally. The company operates through three segments, Marketing and Distribution; International Farming; and Blueberries. It also provides ripening, bagging, custom packing, logistical management, and quality assurance services. In addition, the company offers merchandising and promotional support, and insights on market trends, and training services. Mission Produce, Inc. was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Oxnard, California.

About J. M. Smucker

The J. M. Smucker Company manufactures and markets branded food and beverage products worldwide. It operates in three segments: U.S. Retail Pet Foods, U.S. Retail Coffee, and U.S. Retail Consumer Foods. The company offers mainstream roast, ground, single serve, and premium coffee; peanut butter and specialty spreads; fruit spreads, toppings, and syrups; jelly products; nut mix products; shortening and oils; frozen sandwiches and snacks; pet food and pet snacks; and foodservice hot beverage, foodservice portion control, and flour products, as well as dog and cat food, frozen handheld products, juices and beverages, and baking mixes and ingredients. It provides its products under the Meow Mix, Milk-Bone, Pup-Peroni, Canine Carry Outs, Folgers, Café Bustelo, Dunkin', Folgers, Café Bustelo, 1850, Jif, Smucker's, Smucker's Uncrustables, Robin Hood, and Five Roses. The company sells its products through direct sales and brokers to food retailers, club stores, discount and dollar stores, online retailers, pet specialty stores, natural foods stores and distributors, drug stores, military commissaries, and mass merchandisers. Smucker Company was founded in 1897 and is headquartered in Orrville, Ohio.