Matthews International (MATW) Competitors

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) and Hillenbrand (NYSE:HI) are both small-cap specialized consumer services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, valuation, earnings and institutional ownership.

Which has higher valuation & earnings, MATW or HI?

Matthews International has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Hillenbrand. Matthews International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hillenbrand, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Matthews International	$1.80B	0.42	-$59.66M	-$2.55	-9.65
Hillenbrand	$3.05B	0.49	-$211M	-$3.81	-5.54

Which has more risk & volatility, MATW or HI?

Matthews International has a beta of 1.27, indicating that its stock price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hillenbrand has a beta of 1.46, indicating that its stock price is 46% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is MATW or HI a better dividend stock?

Matthews International pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Hillenbrand pays an annual dividend of $0.90 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.3%. Matthews International pays out -39.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Hillenbrand pays out -23.6% 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. Matthews International has increased its dividend for 30 consecutive years and Hillenbrand has increased its dividend for 18 consecutive years.

Does the media prefer MATW or HI?

In the previous week, Matthews International had 1 more articles in the media than Hillenbrand. MarketBeat recorded 4 mentions for Matthews International and 3 mentions for Hillenbrand. Matthews International's average media sentiment score of 1.15 beat Hillenbrand's score of 0.79 indicating that Matthews International is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Matthews International	0 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Hillenbrand	1 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is MATW or HI more profitable?

Matthews International has a net margin of -4.62% compared to Hillenbrand's net margin of -8.82%. Hillenbrand's return on equity of 15.03% beat Matthews International's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Matthews International	-4.62%	11.04%	2.66%
Hillenbrand	-8.82%	15.03%	4.19%

Do analysts rate MATW or HI?

Matthews International currently has a consensus price target of $40.00, suggesting a potential upside of 62.60%. Hillenbrand has a consensus price target of $32.00, suggesting a potential upside of 51.59%. Given Matthews International's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Matthews International is more favorable than Hillenbrand.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Matthews International	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Hillenbrand	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Do institutionals & insiders have more ownership in MATW or HI?

83.1% of Matthews International shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.1% of Hillenbrand shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.1% of Matthews International shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.0% of Hillenbrand shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Matthews International beats Hillenbrand on 11 of the 19 factors compared between the two stocks.