Comparing Ingredion (NYSE:INGR) and Greencore Group (OTCMKTS:GNCGY)

Ingredion (NYSE:INGR) and Greencore Group (OTCMKTS:GNCGY) are both mid-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Ingredion and Greencore Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ingredion	10.10%	17.32%	9.37%
Greencore Group	N/A	N/A	N/A

Volatility and Risk

Ingredion has a beta of 0.7, indicating that its stock price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Greencore Group has a beta of 0.62, indicating that its stock price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

85.3% of Ingredion shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.8% of Ingredion shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Ingredion and Greencore Group, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ingredion	0	7	2	0	2.22
Greencore Group	0	0	0	1	4.00

Ingredion presently has a consensus target price of $126.14, suggesting a potential upside of 11.16%. Given Ingredion’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Ingredion is more favorable than Greencore Group.

Dividends

Ingredion pays an annual dividend of $3.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Greencore Group pays an annual dividend of $0.09 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Ingredion pays out 29.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Ingredion has increased its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Ingredion is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Ingredion and Greencore Group”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ingredion	$7.22 billion	0.99	$729.00 million	$11.16	10.17
Greencore Group	$2.54 billion	1.00	$75.23 million	N/A	N/A

Ingredion has higher revenue and earnings than Greencore Group.

Summary

Ingredion beats Greencore Group on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ingredion

Ingredion Incorporated, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells sweeteners, starches, nutrition ingredients, and biomaterial solutions derived from wet milling and processing corn, and other starch-based materials to a range of industries in North America, South America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. The company offers starch products for use in a range of processed foods; cornstarch; specialty paper starches for enhanced drainage, fiber retention, oil and grease resistance, improved printability, and biochemical oxygen demand control; starches and specialty starches for textile industry; industrial starches are used in the production of construction materials, textiles, adhesives, pharmaceuticals, and cosmetics, as well as in mining and water filtration; and specialty industrial starches for use in biomaterial applications, including biodegradable plastics, fabric softeners and detergents, hair and skin care applications, dusting powders for surgical gloves, and in the production of glass fiber and insulation. It also provides sweetener products comprising glucose syrups, high maltose syrup, high fructose corn syrup, dextrose, polyols, maltodextrin, glucose syrup solids, and non-genetically modified organism syrups for applications in food and beverage products, such as baked goods, snack foods, canned fruits, condiments, candy and other sweets, dairy products, ice cream, jams and jellies, prepared mixes, table syrups, and beverages. In addition, the company sells refined corn oil, corn gluten feed, and corn gluten meal; and other products, including fruit and vegetable products, such as concentrates, purees, and essences, as well as pulse proteins and hydrocolloids systems and blends. The company was formerly known as Corn Products International, Inc. and changed its name to Ingredion Incorporated in June 2012. Ingredion Incorporated was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Westchester, Illinois.

About Greencore Group

Greencore Group plc, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells convenience food products in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The company offers sandwiches, salads, sushi, chilled snacking, chilled ready meals, chilled soups and sauces, chilled quiche, ambient sauces and pickles, and frozen Yorkshire Puddings. It is also involved in the finance activities; pension funding; and property business. The company supplies its products to supermarkets, convenience and travel retail outlets, discounters, coffee shops, foodservice, and other retailers. Greencore Group plc was incorporated in 1991 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.