Metro (MRU) Competitors

Metro (TSE:MRU) and Loblaw Companies (TSE:L) are both large-cap consumer defensive companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, community ranking, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations and media sentiment.

Which has more volatility and risk, MRU or L?

Metro has a beta of 0.08, meaning that its stock price is 92% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Loblaw Companies has a beta of 0.17, meaning that its stock price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media favor MRU or L?

In the previous week, Loblaw Companies had 16 more articles in the media than Metro. MarketBeat recorded 18 mentions for Loblaw Companies and 2 mentions for Metro. Loblaw Companies' average media sentiment score of 0.24 beat Metro's score of 0.00 indicating that Loblaw Companies is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Metro	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Loblaw Companies	1 Very Positive mention(s)	5 Positive mention(s)	6 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Do analysts recommend MRU or L?

Metro currently has a consensus target price of C$93.56, suggesting a potential upside of 0.89%. Loblaw Companies has a consensus target price of C$199.38, suggesting a potential upside of 13.35%. Given Loblaw Companies' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Loblaw Companies is more favorable than Metro.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Metro	0 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.25
Loblaw Companies	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.71

Is MRU or L a better dividend stock?

Metro pays an annual dividend of C$1.34 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Loblaw Companies pays an annual dividend of C$2.05 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. Metro pays out 30.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Loblaw Companies pays out 27.8% 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.

Which has higher earnings and valuation, MRU or L?

Loblaw Companies has higher revenue and earnings than Metro. Metro is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Loblaw Companies, 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
Metro	C$21.29B	0.96	C$957.36M	C$4.33	21.41
Loblaw Companies	C$60.23B	0.88	C$2.23B	C$7.37	23.87

Does the MarketBeat Community favor MRU or L?

Loblaw Companies received 198 more outperform votes than Metro when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 66.39% of users gave Loblaw Companies an outperform vote while only 54.86% of users gave Metro an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Metro	Outperform Votes 446 54.86%	Underperform Votes 367 45.14%
Loblaw Companies	Outperform Votes 644 66.39%	Underperform Votes 326 33.61%

Is MRU or L more profitable?

Metro has a net margin of 4.50% compared to Loblaw Companies' net margin of 3.71%. Loblaw Companies' return on equity of 19.90% beat Metro's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Metro	4.50%	13.80%	6.40%
Loblaw Companies	3.71%	19.90%	5.89%

Do insiders and institutionals believe in MRU or L?

46.8% of Metro shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 20.7% of Loblaw Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Metro shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 53.8% of Loblaw Companies shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Loblaw Companies beats Metro on 15 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.