Danaos (NYSE:DAC) versus Martin Midstream Partners (NASDAQ:MMLP) Head to Head Analysis

Danaos (NYSE:DAC) and Martin Midstream Partners (NASDAQ:MMLP) are both small-cap transportation companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, risk and earnings.

Dividends

Danaos pays an annual dividend of $3.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.7%. Martin Midstream Partners pays an annual dividend of $0.02 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Danaos pays out 14.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Martin Midstream Partners pays out -5.1% 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. Danaos has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years. Danaos is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares Danaos and Martin Midstream Partners’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Danaos	44.62%	13.88%	10.99%
Martin Midstream Partners	-2.19%	N/A	-2.76%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

19.0% of Danaos shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 34.9% of Martin Midstream Partners shares are owned by institutional investors. 41.0% of Danaos shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 17.0% of Martin Midstream Partners shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Danaos and Martin Midstream Partners”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Danaos	$1.01 billion	1.74	$505.07 million	$24.25	3.83
Martin Midstream Partners	$707.62 million	0.17	-$5.21 million	($0.39)	-7.79

Danaos has higher revenue and earnings than Martin Midstream Partners. Martin Midstream Partners is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Danaos, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Danaos has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its share price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Martin Midstream Partners has a beta of 0.67, suggesting that its share price is 33% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Danaos and Martin Midstream Partners, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Danaos	0	0	1	0	3.00
Martin Midstream Partners	0	0	0	0	0.00

Danaos presently has a consensus target price of $105.00, indicating a potential upside of 13.15%. Given Danaos’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Danaos is more favorable than Martin Midstream Partners.

Summary

Danaos beats Martin Midstream Partners on 15 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Danaos

Danaos Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides container and drybulk vessels services in Australia, Asia, and Europe. The company offers seaborne transportation services by operating vessels in the containership and drybulk sectors of the shipping industry. As of April 03, 2024, it had a fleet of 68 containerships aggregating 421,293 twenty-foot equivalent units in capacity. The company was formerly known as Danaos Holdings Limited and changed its name to Danaos Corporation in October 2005. Danaos Corporation was founded in 1963 and is based in Piraeus, Greece.

About Martin Midstream Partners

Martin Midstream Partners L.P., together with its subsidiaries, provides terminalling, processing, storage, and packaging services for petroleum products and by-products primarily in the United States. The company operates in four segments: Terminalling and Storage, Transportation, Sulfur Services, and Specialty Products. The company's Terminalling and Storage segment owns or operates various marine shore-based terminal facilities and specialty terminal facilities that provide storage, refining, blending, packaging, and handling services for producers and suppliers of petroleum products and by-products. This segment also offers land rental services to oil and gas companies, as well as storage and handling services for lubricants and fuels. Its Transportation segment operates various trucks and tank trailers; and inland marine tank barges, inland push boats, and articulated offshore tug and barge unit to transport petroleum products and by-products, petrochemicals, and chemicals. The company's Sulfur Services segment processes molten sulfur into prilled or pelletized sulfur, which is used in the production of fertilizers and industrial chemicals. Its Specialty Products segment stores, distributes, and transports natural gas liquids for wholesale deliveries to refineries, industrial natural gas liquid users, and propane retailers. Martin Midstream GP LLC serves as a general partner of the company. Martin Midstream Partners L.P. was incorporated in 2002 and is based in Kilgore, Texas.