Financial Contrast: Woolworths Group (OTCMKTS:WOLWF) versus Eurocash (OTCMKTS:EUSHY)

Eurocash (OTCMKTS:EUSHY) and Woolworths Group (OTCMKTS:WOLWF) are both consumer defensive companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk and profitability.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.2% of Eurocash shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 14.5% of Woolworths Group shares are held by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Eurocash and Woolworths Group”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Eurocash	N/A	N/A	N/A	$1.32	1.46
Woolworths Group	N/A	N/A	N/A	$1.96	10.71

Eurocash is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Woolworths Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Eurocash and Woolworths Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Eurocash	0	1	0	0	2.00
Woolworths Group	0	1	1	0	2.50

Woolworths Group has a consensus price target of $34.00, suggesting a potential upside of 62.37%. Given Woolworths Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Woolworths Group is more favorable than Eurocash.

Profitability

This table compares Eurocash and Woolworths Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Eurocash	N/A	N/A	N/A
Woolworths Group	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Eurocash pays an annual dividend of $0.58 per share and has a dividend yield of 30.1%. Woolworths Group pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.5%. Eurocash pays out 43.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Woolworths Group pays out 69.5% 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. Eurocash is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Summary

Woolworths Group beats Eurocash on 6 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Eurocash

Eurocash S.A. engages in the wholesale distribution of food and other fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) in Poland. The company operates through Wholesale, Retail, and Projects segments. Its FMCG products include food products, soft drinks, alcoholic beverages, tobacco products, and household chemicals and cosmetics. The company markets its products to traditional retail stores, including small supermarkets, grocery stores, and specialized grocery stores; and kiosks, retail outlets, and convenience stores, restaurants, gas stations, hotel and café chains, and catering outlets. It operates a network of Cash & Carry warehouses; Delikatesy Centrum network supermarkets; Inmedio; and franchise and partner stores of Eurocash distribution. Eurocash S.A. was incorporated in 2014 and is based in Komorniki, Poland.

About Woolworths Group

Woolworths Group Limited operates retail stores in Australia and New Zealand. It operates through Australian Food, Australian B2B, New Zealand Food, BIG W, and Other segments. The Australian Food segment procures and resells food and related products, and provides services to customers in Australia. The Australian B2B segment engages in procurement and distribution of food and related products for resale to other businesses, as well as provision of supply chain services to business customers in Australia. The New Zealand Food segment is involved in the procurement and resale of food and drinks, and provides services to retail customers in New Zealand. BIG W segment procures and resells discount general merchandise products to customers in Australia. The Other segment operates Quantium and MyDeal retail stores The company was formerly known as Woolworths Limited and changed its name to Woolworths Group Limited in December 2017. Woolworths Group Limited was incorporated in 1924 and is based in Bella Vista, Australia.