Want Want China (OTCMKTS:WWNTY) versus General Mills (NYSE:GIS) Critical Contrast

General Mills (NYSE:GIS) and Want Want China (OTCMKTS:WWNTY) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, earnings and risk.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

75.7% of General Mills shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of General Mills shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for General Mills and Want Want China, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
General Mills	7	10	4	0	1.86
Want Want China	0	0	0	0	0.00

General Mills currently has a consensus price target of $39.06, suggesting a potential upside of 8.36%. Given General Mills’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe General Mills is more favorable than Want Want China.

Risk and Volatility

General Mills has a beta of -0.03, indicating that its share price is 103% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Want Want China has a beta of 0.15, indicating that its share price is 85% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares General Mills and Want Want China’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
General Mills	12.05%	19.19%	5.48%
Want Want China	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares General Mills and Want Want China”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
General Mills	$19.49 billion	0.99	$2.30 billion	$4.09	8.81
Want Want China	$3.23 billion	1.86	$600.91 million	N/A	N/A

General Mills has higher revenue and earnings than Want Want China.

Dividends

General Mills pays an annual dividend of $2.44 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.8%. Want Want China pays an annual dividend of $0.95 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.7%. General Mills pays out 59.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. General Mills has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. General Mills is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

General Mills beats Want Want China on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About General Mills

General Mills, Inc. manufactures and markets branded consumer foods worldwide. The company operates through four segments: North America Retail; International; Pet; and North America Foodservice. It offers grain, ready-to-eat cereals, refrigerated yogurt, soup, meal kits, refrigerated and frozen dough products, dessert and baking mixes, bakery flour, frozen pizza and pizza snacks, snack bars, fruit and savory snacks, ice cream and frozen desserts, unbaked and fully baked frozen dough products, frozen hot snacks, ethnic meals, side dish mixes, frozen breakfast and entrees, nutrition bars, and frozen and shelf-stable vegetables. The company also manufactures and markets pet food products, including dog and cat food; and operates ice cream parlors. It markets its products under the Annie’s, Betty Crocker, Bisquick, Blue Buffalo, Bugles, Cascadian Farm, Cheerios, Chex, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Cocoa Puffs, Cookie Crisp, Dunkaroos, Edgard & Cooper, Fiber One, Fruit by the Foot, Fruit Gushers, Fruit Roll-Ups, Gardetto’s, Gold Medal, Golden Grahams, Häagen-Dazs, Kitano, Kix, Lärabar, Latina, Lucky Charms, Muir Glen, Nature Valley, Nudges, Oatmeal Crisp, Old El Paso, Pillsbury, Progresso, Tastefuls, Total, Totino’s , Trix, True Chews, True Solutions, Wanchai Ferry, Wheaties, Wilderness, and Yoki brands. The company sells its products to grocery stores, mass merchandisers, membership stores, natural food chains, drug, dollar and discount chains, e-commerce retailers, commercial and noncommercial foodservice distributors and operators, restaurants, convenience stores, and pet specialty stores. General Mills, Inc. was founded in 1866 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

About Want Want China

Want Want China Holdings Limited, an investment holding company, manufactures, distributes, and sells food and beverages. The company operates through four segments: Rice Crackers, Dairy Products and Beverages, Snack Foods, and Other Products. It offers sugar coated crackers, savoury crackers, fried crackers, and gift packs; flavored milk, room temperature yogurt, yogurt drinks, ready-to-drink coffee, juice and sports drinks, herbal tea, and milk powder; candies, popsicles, ball cakes and jellies, beans, nuts, and other snacks; and wine and other food products. The company also trades in food and beverages, and related activities online, as well as raw materials, machineries, etc.; sells chemical materials and plastic films/bags; manufactures and sells machineries and related services; manufactures dehydrating, deoxidating, preservative, and related products; manufactures and sells packaging materials, packing bags, carton boxes, and cans; provides consultancy, information, business, and network technology services; processes and sells rice and oil products; and manufactures and sells rice flour. In addition, it engages in the agricultural planting and management, and livestock and poultry breeding businesses. It serves customers through a sales and distribution network primarily in the People's Republic of China. The company also exports its products to North America, East Asia, South East Asia, and Europe. Want The company was founded in 1962 and is headquartered in Kowloon Bay, Hong Kong.