Head-To-Head Survey: Firstgroup (OTCMKTS:FGROY) and C.H. Robinson Worldwide (NASDAQ:CHRW)

Firstgroup (OTCMKTS:FGROY) and C.H. Robinson Worldwide (NASDAQ:CHRW) are both transportation companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Firstgroup and C.H. Robinson Worldwide’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Firstgroup	N/A	N/A	N/A
C.H. Robinson Worldwide	3.64%	34.77%	11.71%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Firstgroup and C.H. Robinson Worldwide, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Firstgroup	0	0	1	0	3.00
C.H. Robinson Worldwide	1	8	16	1	2.65

C.H. Robinson Worldwide has a consensus price target of $149.48, indicating a potential downside of 8.70%. Given C.H. Robinson Worldwide’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe C.H. Robinson Worldwide is more favorable than Firstgroup.

Dividends

Firstgroup pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. C.H. Robinson Worldwide pays an annual dividend of $2.52 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. C.H. Robinson Worldwide pays out 51.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. C.H. Robinson Worldwide has raised its dividend for 27 consecutive years. C.H. Robinson Worldwide is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Firstgroup and C.H. Robinson Worldwide”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Firstgroup	$6.46 billion	0.24	$162.68 million	N/A	N/A
C.H. Robinson Worldwide	$17.72 billion	1.09	$465.69 million	$4.93	33.21

C.H. Robinson Worldwide has higher revenue and earnings than Firstgroup.

Risk and Volatility

Firstgroup has a beta of 0.41, meaning that its share price is 59% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, C.H. Robinson Worldwide has a beta of 0.91, meaning that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

93.2% of C.H. Robinson Worldwide shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.2% of Firstgroup shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of C.H. Robinson Worldwide shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

C.H. Robinson Worldwide beats Firstgroup on 14 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Firstgroup

FirstGroup plc provides public transport services in the United Kingdom. The company operates through First Bus and First Rail segments. The First Bus segment offers local bus services with a fleet of approximately 4,800 buses in the United Kingdom. The First Rail segment operates a passenger rail network that provides long-distance, commuter, regional, and sleeper services through a portfolio of Great Western Railway, South Western Railway, and Avanti West Coast franchises; and hull trains and Lumos. FirstGroup plc was founded in 1986 and is based in London, the United Kingdom.

About C.H. Robinson Worldwide

C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides freight transportation services, and related logistics and supply chain services in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments: North American Surface Transportation and Global Forwarding. The company offers transportation and logistics services, such as truckload, less than truckload transportation brokerage services, which include the shipment of single or multiple pallets of freight; intermodal transportation that comprises the shipment service of freight in containers or trailers by a combination of truck and rail; and non-vessel operating common carrier and freight forwarding services, as well as organizes air shipments and provides door-to-door services. It also provides customs brokerage services; and other logistics services, such as fee-based managed, warehousing, small parcel, and other services. It has contractual relationships with approximately 45,000 transportation companies, including motor carriers, railroads, and ocean and air carriers. In addition, the company is involved in the buying, selling, and/or marketing of fresh fruits, vegetables, and other value-added perishable items under the Robinson Fresh brand name. Further, the company offers transportation management services or managed TMS; and other surface transportation services. It provides its fresh produce to grocery retailers, restaurants, produce wholesalers, and foodservice distributors through a network of independent produce growers and suppliers. The company was founded in 1905 and is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.