Head to Head Analysis: MTR (OTCMKTS:MTCPY) versus Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD)

Heartland Express (NASDAQ:HTLD) and MTR (OTCMKTS:MTCPY) are both industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, risk, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Heartland Express and MTR”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Heartland Express	$805.71 million	1.23	-$52.45 million	($0.28)	-45.79
MTR	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

MTR has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Heartland Express.

Profitability

This table compares Heartland Express and MTR’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Heartland Express	-2.98%	-0.92%	-0.58%
MTR	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

53.4% of Heartland Express shares are owned by institutional investors. 41.6% of Heartland Express shares are owned 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Heartland Express and MTR, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Heartland Express	3	2	1	1	2.00
MTR	0	0	0	0	0.00

Heartland Express currently has a consensus target price of $13.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1.40%. Given Heartland Express’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Heartland Express is more favorable than MTR.

Summary

Heartland Express beats MTR on 7 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Heartland Express

Heartland Express, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a short-to-medium, and long-haul truckload carrier in the United States and Canada. It primarily provides nationwide asset-based dry van truckload service for shippers; cross-border freight and other transportation services; and temperature-controlled truckload services. The company offers its services under the Heartland Express and Millis Transfer brand names. It primarily serves retailers and manufacturers in consumer goods, appliances, food products, and automotive industries. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in North Liberty, Iowa.

About MTR

MTR Corporation Limited designs, constructs, operates, maintains, and invests in railways in Hong Kong, Australia, Mainland China, Macao, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. It operates through Hong Kong Transport Operations; Hong Kong Station Commercial Businesses; Hong Kong Property Rental and Management Businesses; Hong Kong Property Development; Mainland China and International Railway, Property Rental and Management Businesses; Mainland China Property Development; and Other Businesses segments. The company offers domestic and cross-boundary railway services, airport express, and a light rail and bus feeder system. It operates rail network; and stations. The company also provides intercity railway services; leases advertising, office, retail, and car parking spaces at railway stations; offers telecommunication and bandwidth services in railway premises; provides estate management services; and invests in, develops, manages, and leases properties, including shopping malls and offices. In addition, it is involved in the construction, operation, and maintenance of mass transit railway systems. Further, it operates Octopus, a contactless smartcard common payment system; and provides railway consultancy and project management services, as well as offers railway management, engineering, and technology training services. Additionally, the company administers the operation of MTR academy; and provides station management, financing, technical support, and mobile telecommunication network and related services. It also operates cable car system and a theme village. The company was founded in 1975 and is headquartered in Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong.