Reviewing Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) & Mitchells & Butlers (OTCMKTS:MBPFF)

Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) and Mitchells & Butlers (OTCMKTS:MBPFF) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Risk and Volatility

Starbucks has a beta of 0.93, meaning that its stock price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Mitchells & Butlers has a beta of 0.48, meaning that its stock price is 52% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Starbucks and Mitchells & Butlers, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Starbucks	2	11	17	0	2.50
Mitchells & Butlers	0	0	0	0	0.00

Starbucks presently has a consensus price target of $104.22, suggesting a potential upside of 3.43%. Given Starbucks’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Starbucks is more favorable than Mitchells & Butlers.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

72.3% of Starbucks shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Starbucks shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Starbucks and Mitchells & Butlers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Starbucks	3.63%	-28.66%	7.03%
Mitchells & Butlers	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Starbucks and Mitchells & Butlers”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Starbucks	$37.18 billion	3.09	$1.86 billion	$1.21	83.28
Mitchells & Butlers	$3.54 billion	0.58	$231.16 million	N/A	N/A

Starbucks has higher revenue and earnings than Mitchells & Butlers.

Summary

Starbucks beats Mitchells & Butlers on 11 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Starbucks

Starbucks Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a roaster, marketer, and retailer of coffee worldwide. The company operates through three segments: North America, International, and Channel Development. Its stores offer coffee and tea beverages, roasted whole beans and ground coffees, single serve products, and ready-to-drink beverages; and various food products, such as pastries, breakfast sandwiches, and lunch items. The company also licenses its trademarks through licensed stores, and grocery and foodservice accounts. The company offers its products under the Starbucks Coffee, Teavana, Seattle’s Best Coffee, Ethos, Starbucks Reserve, and Princi brands. Starbucks Corporation was founded in 1971 and is based in Seattle, Washington.

About Mitchells & Butlers

Mitchells & Butlers plc engages in the management of pubs, bars, and restaurants in the United Kingdom and Germany. The company operates its pubs and restaurants under the Alex, All Bar One, Browns, Castle, EGO, Ember Inns, Harvester, High Street, Innkeeper's Lodge, Miller & Carter, Nicholson's, O'Neill's, Premium Country Pubs, Sizzling Pubs, Suburban, Stonehouse Pizza & Carvery, Toby Carvery, and Vintage Inns brands and formats. It also engages in the leisure retailing; property leasing, property management, and development; and financing activities, as well as operates as a healthcare trustee. In addition, the company owns various trademarks. The company was founded in 1898 and is headquartered in Birmingham, the United Kingdom.