WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) versus J. W. Mays (NASDAQ:MAYS) Head-To-Head Comparison

WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) and J. W. Mays (NASDAQ:MAYS) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, risk, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for WillScot and J. W. Mays, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
WillScot	1	7	3	0	2.18
J. W. Mays	1	0	0	0	1.00

WillScot presently has a consensus price target of $25.88, suggesting a potential upside of 13.19%. Given WillScot’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe WillScot is more favorable than J. W. Mays.

Profitability

This table compares WillScot and J. W. Mays’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
WillScot	-2.99%	20.65%	3.31%
J. W. Mays	-3.90%	-1.62%	-0.96%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares WillScot and J. W. Mays”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
WillScot	$2.28 billion	1.81	-$52.99 million	($0.38)	-60.16
J. W. Mays	$22.47 million	3.66	-$140,000.00	($0.43)	-94.65

J. W. Mays has lower revenue, but higher earnings than WillScot. J. W. Mays is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than WillScot, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

WillScot has a beta of 1.31, meaning that its stock price is 31% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, J. W. Mays has a beta of 0.16, meaning that its stock price is 84% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

95.8% of WillScot shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.2% of J. W. Mays shares are held by institutional investors. 3.1% of WillScot shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 40.8% of J. W. Mays 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.

Summary

WillScot beats J. W. Mays on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About WillScot

WillScot Holdings Corporation provides workspace and portable storage solutions in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It operates in two segments, Modular Solutions and Storage Solutions. Its modular solutions include panelized and stackable offices, single-wide modular space units, section modulars and redi-plex, classrooms, ground level offices, blast-resistant modules, clearspan structures, and other modular space; and portable storage solutions, such as portable and cold storage containers, as well as trailers. The company leases modular space and portable storage units to customers in the construction, commercial and industrial, retail and wholesale trade, energy and natural resources, education, government and institutions, and healthcare markets. The company offers its solutions primarily under the WillScot and Mobile Mini brand names. The company was formerly known as WillScot Mobile Mini Holdings Corp. and changed its name to WillScot Holdings Corporation in July 2024. WillScot Mobile Mini Holdings Corp. is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.

About J. W. Mays

J.W. Mays, Inc. owns, operates, and leases commercial real estate properties in United States. The company's properties are located in Brooklyn, Jamaica, Fishkill, Levittown, and Massapequa of New York; and Circleville of Ohio. The company was founded in 1924 and is based in Brooklyn, New York.