Critical Contrast: Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) & Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA)

Murphy USA (NYSE:MUSA) and Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) are both mid-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends and profitability.

Volatility & Risk

Murphy USA has a beta of 0.29, indicating that its share price is 71% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Asbury Automotive Group has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

80.8% of Murphy USA shares are owned by institutional investors. 9.0% of Murphy USA shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of Asbury Automotive Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Murphy USA and Asbury Automotive Group, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Murphy USA	0	5	6	0	2.55
Asbury Automotive Group	2	5	3	0	2.10

Murphy USA currently has a consensus price target of $606.33, indicating a potential upside of 13.21%. Asbury Automotive Group has a consensus price target of $220.88, indicating a potential upside of 11.69%. Given Murphy USA’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Murphy USA is more favorable than Asbury Automotive Group.

Profitability

This table compares Murphy USA and Asbury Automotive Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Murphy USA	2.85%	92.81%	13.36%
Asbury Automotive Group	2.66%	11.94%	4.08%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Murphy USA and Asbury Automotive Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Murphy USA	$23.26 billion	0.43	$470.60 million	$35.67	15.02
Asbury Automotive Group	$18.00 billion	0.20	$492.00 million	$25.06	7.89

Asbury Automotive Group has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Murphy USA. Asbury Automotive Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Murphy USA, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Murphy USA beats Asbury Automotive Group on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Murphy USA

Murphy USA Inc. engages in marketing of retail motor fuel products and convenience merchandise. The company operates retail stores under the Murphy USA, Murphy Express, and QuickChek brands, as well as operates non-fuel convenience stores. It operates retail gasoline stores principally in the Southeast, Southwest, and Midwest United States. Murphy USA Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in El Dorado, Arkansas.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services. The company also provides finance and insurance products, including arranging vehicle financing through third parties; and aftermarket products, such as extended service contracts, guaranteed asset protection debt cancellation, prepaid maintenance, and disability and accident insurance. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is based in Duluth, Georgia.