Brady (NYSE:BRC) vs. GFL Environmental (NYSE:GFL) Critical Survey

Brady (NYSE:BRC) and GFL Environmental (NYSE:GFL) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, risk, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability and earnings.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

76.3% of Brady shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.7% of GFL Environmental shares are owned by institutional investors. 15.6% of Brady shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 8.7% of GFL Environmental shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Brady and GFL Environmental, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Brady	0	0	2	0	3.00
GFL Environmental	2	2	11	0	2.60

Brady presently has a consensus target price of $103.00, indicating a potential upside of 20.07%. GFL Environmental has a consensus target price of $54.25, indicating a potential upside of 30.55%. Given GFL Environmental’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe GFL Environmental is more favorable than Brady.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Brady and GFL Environmental”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Brady	$1.66 billion	2.43	$205.38 million	$4.31	19.90
GFL Environmental	$4.73 billion	3.17	$2.74 billion	($0.53)	-78.40

GFL Environmental has higher revenue and earnings than Brady. GFL Environmental is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Brady, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Brady and GFL Environmental’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Brady	12.36%	19.21%	13.83%
GFL Environmental	-3.28%	4.14%	1.55%

Dividends

Brady pays an annual dividend of $0.98 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. GFL Environmental pays an annual dividend of $0.07 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. Brady pays out 22.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. GFL Environmental pays out -13.2% 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. Brady has raised its dividend for 39 consecutive years and GFL Environmental has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Brady is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Volatility and Risk

Brady has a beta of 0.61, indicating that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, GFL Environmental has a beta of 0.68, indicating that its share price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Brady beats GFL Environmental on 10 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Brady

Brady Corporation manufactures and supplies identification solutions (IDS) and workplace safety (WPS) products to identify and protect premises, products, and people in the United States and internationally. The company offers materials, printing systems, RFID, and bar code scanners for product identification, brand protection labeling, work in process labeling, finished product identification, and industrial track and trace applications; safety signs, floor-marking tapes, pipe markers, labeling systems, spill control products, lockout/tagout device, and software and services for safety compliance auditing, procedure writing, and training; and hand-held printers, wire markers, sleeves, and tags for wire identification. It also provides name tags, badges, lanyards, rigid card printing systems, and access control software for people identification; and wristbands, labels, printing systems, and other products for tracking and improving the safety of patients. In addition, the company offers workplace safety, identification, and compliance products, such as safety and compliance signs, tags, labels, and markings; informational signage and markings; asset tracking labels; facility safety and personal protection equipment; first-aid products; and other compliance products for process, government, education, construction, and utilities industries. Further, it provides stock and custom identification products; and sells related resale products. The company serves industrial and electronic manufacturing, healthcare, chemical, oil, gas, automotive, aerospace, governments, mass transit, electrical contractors, education, leisure and entertainment, telecommunications, and other industries through distributors, direct sales force, and digital channels. Brady Corporation was incorporated in 1914 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

About GFL Environmental

GFL Environmental Inc. offers non-hazardous solid waste management and environmental services in Canada and the United States. It offers solid waste management, liquid waste management, and soil remediation services, including collection, transportation, transfer, recycling, and disposal services for municipal, residential, and commercial, and industrial customers. The company was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Vaughan, Canada.