MSA Safety Incorporporated (NYSE:MSA) & Hyster-Yale (NYSE:HY) Head-To-Head Review

Hyster-Yale (NYSE:HY) and MSA Safety Incorporporated (NYSE:MSA) are both industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

46.5% of Hyster-Yale shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.5% of MSA Safety Incorporporated shares are held by institutional investors. 37.8% of Hyster-Yale shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of MSA Safety Incorporporated shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Hyster-Yale has a beta of 1.63, meaning that its share price is 63% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MSA Safety Incorporporated has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Hyster-Yale pays an annual dividend of $1.46 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.1%. MSA Safety Incorporporated pays an annual dividend of $2.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Hyster-Yale pays out -22.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MSA Safety Incorporporated pays out 26.9% 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. Hyster-Yale has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years and MSA Safety Incorporporated has increased its dividend for 56 consecutive years. Hyster-Yale is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Hyster-Yale and MSA Safety Incorporporated, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hyster-Yale	1	1	2	0	2.25
MSA Safety Incorporporated	0	4	2	0	2.33

Hyster-Yale currently has a consensus target price of $47.50, indicating a potential upside of 66.37%. MSA Safety Incorporporated has a consensus target price of $211.33, indicating a potential upside of 18.38%. Given Hyster-Yale’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Hyster-Yale is more favorable than MSA Safety Incorporporated.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Hyster-Yale and MSA Safety Incorporporated”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hyster-Yale	$3.77 billion	0.14	-$60.10 million	($6.56)	-4.35
MSA Safety Incorporporated	$1.87 billion	3.67	$278.92 million	$8.04	22.20

MSA Safety Incorporporated has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Hyster-Yale. Hyster-Yale is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than MSA Safety Incorporporated, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Hyster-Yale and MSA Safety Incorporporated’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hyster-Yale	-3.33%	-21.03%	-4.87%
MSA Safety Incorporporated	16.13%	25.13%	13.24%

Summary

MSA Safety Incorporporated beats Hyster-Yale on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hyster-Yale

Hyster-Yale, Inc., through its subsidiaries, designs, engineers, manufactures, sells, and services a line of lift trucks, attachments, and aftermarket parts worldwide. The company manufactures components, such as frames, masts, and transmissions; and assembles lift trucks. It markets its products primarily under the Hyster and Yale brand names to independent Hyster and Yale retail dealerships. The company also sells aftermarket parts under the Hyster and Yale, as well as UNISOURCE and PREMIER brands to Hyster and Yale dealers for the service of competitor lift trucks. In addition, it produces and distributes attachments, forks, and lift tables under the Bolzoni, Auramo, and Meyer brand names; and designs and produces products in the port equipment and rough terrain forklift markets. Further, the company designs, manufactures, and sells hydrogen fuel-cell stacks and engines. It serves light and heavy manufacturers, trucking and automotive companies, rental companies, building materials and paper suppliers, lumber, metal products, warehouses, retailers, food distributors, container handling companies, and U.S. and non-U.S. governmental agencies. The company was formerly known as Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc. and changed its name to Hyster-Yale, Inc. in June 2024. Hyster-Yale, Inc. was incorporated in 1991 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.

About MSA Safety Incorporporated

MSA Safety Incorporated develops, manufactures, and supplies safety products and technology solutions that protect people and facility infrastructures in the fire service, energy, utility, construction, and industrial manufacturing applications, as well as heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration industries worldwide. The company's core product offerings include fixed gas and flame detection systems, such as gas detection monitoring systems, and flame detectors and open-path infrared gas detectors; breathing apparatus products, including self-contained breathing apparatus; hand-held portable gas detection instruments to detect the presence or absence of various gases in the air; industrial head protection products; firefighter helmets and protective apparel; and fall protection equipment, such as confined space equipment, harnesses, lanyards, and self-retracting lifelines, as well as engineered systems. In addition, the company offers air-purifying respirators, eye and face protection products, ballistic helmets, and gas masks. It serves distributors and end-users through indirect and direct sales channels. The company offers its products under the V-Gard, Cairns, and Gallet brand names. MSA Safety Incorporated was founded in 1914 and is based in Cranberry Township, Pennsylvania.