Financial Review: H. B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) and Mativ (NYSE:MATV)

Mativ (NYSE:MATV) and H. B. Fuller (NYSE:FUL) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, earnings and valuation.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

95.0% of Mativ shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 95.9% of H. B. Fuller shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of Mativ shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.0% of H. B. Fuller shares are held by 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 Mativ and H. B. Fuller’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mativ	-22.03%	7.06%	1.73%
H. B. Fuller	3.28%	11.49%	4.24%

Risk and Volatility

Mativ has a beta of 0.86, meaning that its share price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, H. B. Fuller has a beta of 1.09, meaning that its share price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Mativ and H. B. Fuller”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mativ	$1.98 billion	0.34	-$48.70 million	($8.03)	-1.53
H. B. Fuller	$3.57 billion	0.91	$130.26 million	$1.85	32.42

H. B. Fuller has higher revenue and earnings than Mativ. Mativ is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than H. B. Fuller, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Mativ and H. B. Fuller, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mativ	1	1	1	0	2.00
H. B. Fuller	1	3	3	2	2.67

Mativ currently has a consensus price target of $10.00, suggesting a potential downside of 18.47%. H. B. Fuller has a consensus price target of $66.20, suggesting a potential upside of 10.37%. Given H. B. Fuller’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe H. B. Fuller is more favorable than Mativ.

Dividends

Mativ pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. H. B. Fuller pays an annual dividend of $0.94 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Mativ pays out -5.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. H. B. Fuller pays out 50.8% 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. Mativ has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years and H. B. Fuller has increased its dividend for 57 consecutive years. Mativ is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Summary

H. B. Fuller beats Mativ on 16 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mativ

Mativ Holdings, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells specialty materials in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, the Americas, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Advanced Technical Materials and Fiber-Based Solutions. The Advanced Technical Materials manufactures and sells various engineered polymer, resin and fiber-based substrates, nets, films, adhesive tapes, and other nonwovens for the filtration, protective solutions, release liners, and healthcare end-markets. This segment sells its products directly, as well as through sales agents and distributors. The Fiber-Based Solutions segment produces packaging and specialty paper products. This segment provides premium packaging products that are used for wine, spirits and beer labels, folding cartons, box wrap, bags, hang tags, and stored value cards servicing retail, cosmetics, spirits, and electronics end-use markets; and premium papers, which are used in commercial printing services, advertising collateral, stationery, corporate identity packages and brochures, direct mail, business cards, and other uses. It also offers branded paper-based products for the consumer channel, such as bright papers, cardstock, stationery paper, envelopes, journals, and planners. This segment distributes its products through authorized paper distributors, converters, retailers, and specialty business converters, as well as directly to end-users. The company was formerly known as Schweitzer-Mauduit International, Inc. and changed its name to Mativ Holdings, Inc. in July 2022. Mativ Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Alpharetta, Georgia.

About H. B. Fuller

H.B. Fuller Company, together with its subsidiaries, formulates, manufactures, and markets adhesives, sealants, coatings, polymers, tapes, encapsulants, additives, and other specialty chemical products. It operates through three segments: Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives; Engineering Adhesives; and Construction Adhesives. The Hygiene, Health and Consumable Adhesives segment produces and supplies specialty industrial adhesives, such as thermoplastic, thermoset, reactive, water-based, and solvent-based products for applications in various markets, including packaging, converting, nonwoven and hygiene, and health and beauty. The Engineering Adhesives segment produces and supplies high performance industrial adhesives comprising reactive, light cure, two-part liquids, polyurethane, silicone, film, and fast cure products to the durable assembly, performance wood and textile, transportation, electronics, clean energy, aerospace and defense, appliance, heavy machinery, and insulating glass markets. The Construction Adhesives segment provides products used for tile setting, commercial roofing, heating, ventilation, and air conditioning and insulation applications, as well as caulks and sealants for the consumer market and professional trade. The company sells its products directly to customers, as well as through distributors and retailers in the Americas, Europe, India, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. H.B. Fuller Company was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Saint Paul, Minnesota.