CrossAmerica Partners (CAPL) Competitors

CrossAmerica Partners (NYSE:CAPL) and Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENT) are both wholesale companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, media sentiment, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings and dividends.

Does the media prefer CAPL or CENT?

In the previous week, Central Garden & Pet had 7 more articles in the media than CrossAmerica Partners. MarketBeat recorded 8 mentions for Central Garden & Pet and 1 mentions for CrossAmerica Partners. Central Garden & Pet's average media sentiment score of 0.47 beat CrossAmerica Partners' score of 0.00 indicating that Central Garden & Pet is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
CrossAmerica Partners	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Central Garden & Pet	1 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Which has more volatility and risk, CAPL or CENT?

CrossAmerica Partners has a beta of 0.57, indicating that its share price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Central Garden & Pet has a beta of 0.7, indicating that its share price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts prefer CAPL or CENT?

Central Garden & Pet has a consensus price target of $40.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1.37%. Given Central Garden & Pet's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Central Garden & Pet is more favorable than CrossAmerica Partners.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CrossAmerica Partners	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00
Central Garden & Pet	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.33

Which has better earnings and valuation, CAPL or CENT?

Central Garden & Pet has lower revenue, but higher earnings than CrossAmerica Partners. Central Garden & Pet is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CrossAmerica Partners, 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
CrossAmerica Partners	$4.10B	0.19	$19.89M	$0.80	25.83
Central Garden & Pet	$3.20B	0.81	$107.98M	$1.87	21.10

Do institutionals and insiders hold more shares of CAPL or CENT?

24.1% of CrossAmerica Partners shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 16.1% of Central Garden & Pet shares are owned by institutional investors. 52.0% of CrossAmerica Partners shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 8.2% of Central Garden & Pet shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Is CAPL or CENT more profitable?

Central Garden & Pet has a net margin of 3.90% compared to CrossAmerica Partners' net margin of 0.80%. Central Garden & Pet's return on equity of 10.14% beat CrossAmerica Partners' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CrossAmerica Partners	0.80%	-45.12%	2.37%
Central Garden & Pet	3.90%	10.14%	4.40%

Summary

Central Garden & Pet beats CrossAmerica Partners on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.