Head-To-Head Contrast: Installed Building Products (NYSE:IBP) versus Lifetime Brands (NASDAQ:LCUT)

Installed Building Products (NYSE:IBP) and Lifetime Brands (NASDAQ:LCUT) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and earnings.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Installed Building Products and Lifetime Brands, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Installed Building Products	1	9	2	1	2.23
Lifetime Brands	0	2	1	1	2.75

Installed Building Products currently has a consensus target price of $245.36, suggesting a potential upside of 27.15%. Lifetime Brands has a consensus target price of $9.50, suggesting a potential upside of 4.17%. Given Installed Building Products’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Installed Building Products is more favorable than Lifetime Brands.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Installed Building Products and Lifetime Brands”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Installed Building Products	$2.97 billion	1.73	$265.40 million	$9.29	20.77
Lifetime Brands	$647.93 million	0.32	-$26.94 million	$1.43	6.38

Installed Building Products has higher revenue and earnings than Lifetime Brands. Lifetime Brands is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Installed Building Products, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

99.6% of Installed Building Products shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 40.6% of Lifetime Brands shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.8% of Installed Building Products shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 44.4% of Lifetime Brands 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.

Profitability

This table compares Installed Building Products and Lifetime Brands’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Installed Building Products	8.46%	42.12%	13.20%
Lifetime Brands	4.81%	26.39%	9.21%

Risk and Volatility

Installed Building Products has a beta of 1.71, suggesting that its stock price is 71% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lifetime Brands has a beta of 1.01, suggesting that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Installed Building Products pays an annual dividend of $1.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Lifetime Brands pays an annual dividend of $0.17 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. Installed Building Products pays out 16.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Lifetime Brands pays out 11.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Lifetime Brands is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Summary

Installed Building Products beats Lifetime Brands on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Installed Building Products

Installed Building Products, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the installation of insulation, waterproofing, fire-stopping, fireproofing, garage doors, rain gutters, window blinds, shower doors, closet shelving and mirrors, and other products in the United States. It operates through Installation, Distribution, and Manufacturing operation segments. The company offers a range of insulation materials, such as fiberglass and cellulose, and spray foam insulation materials. It is also involved in the installation of insulation and sealant materials in various areas of a structure, which includes basement and crawl space, building envelope, attic, and acoustical applications. In addition, the company installs a range of caulk and sealant products that control air infiltration in residential and commercial buildings; and waterproofing options, including sheet and hot applied waterproofing membranes, as well as deck coating, bentonite, and air and vapor systems. Further, it distributes spray foam insulation, metal building insulation, residential insulation, and mechanical and fabricated Styrofoam insulation, as well as accessories and equipment used in the insulation installation process; and manufactures cellulose insulation and specialty industrial fibers. It serves homebuilders, multi-family and commercial and agricultural construction firms, individual homeowners, and repair and remodeling contractors. The company was formerly known as CCIB Holdco, Inc. Installed Building Products, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is based in Columbus, Ohio.

About Lifetime Brands

Lifetime Brands, Inc. designs, sources, and sells branded kitchenware, tableware, and other products for use in the home in the worldwide. The company provides kitchenware products, including kitchen tools and gadgets, cutlery, kitchen scales, thermometers, cutting boards, shears, cookware, pantryware, spice racks, and bakeware; and tableware products comprising dinnerware, stemware, flatware, and giftware. It also provides home solutions, such as thermal beverageware, bath scales, weather and outdoor household, food storage, neoprene travel, and home décor products. The company owns or licenses various brands, including the Farberware, Mikasa, Taylor, KitchenAid, Pfaltzgraff, BUILT NY, Rabbit, Kamenstein, S’well, and Fred & Friends. It serves mass market merchants, specialty stores, department stores, warehouse clubs, grocery stores, off-price retailers, food service distributors, food and beverage outlets, and e-commerce. The company sells its products directly, as well as through its retail websites. Lifetime Brands, Inc. was founded in 1945 and is headquartered in Garden City, New York.