Tejon Ranch (NYSE:TRC) and J. W. Mays (NASDAQ:MAYS) Head-To-Head Analysis

J. W. Mays (NASDAQ:MAYS) and Tejon Ranch (NYSE:TRC) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, valuation and dividends.

Risk and Volatility

J. W. Mays has a beta of 0.18, suggesting that its stock price is 82% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Tejon Ranch has a beta of 0.6, suggesting that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares J. W. Mays and Tejon Ranch”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
J. W. Mays	$22.47 million	3.58	-$140,000.00	($0.58)	-68.62
Tejon Ranch	$49.59 million	10.28	$80,000.00	$0.07	269.64

Tejon Ranch has higher revenue and earnings than J. W. Mays. J. W. Mays is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Tejon Ranch, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

3.2% of J. W. Mays shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.6% of Tejon Ranch shares are held by institutional investors. 40.8% of J. W. Mays shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 21.9% of Tejon Ranch shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for J. W. Mays and Tejon Ranch, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
J. W. Mays	1	0	0	0	1.00
Tejon Ranch	1	0	0	0	1.00

Profitability

This table compares J. W. Mays and Tejon Ranch’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
J. W. Mays	-5.37%	-2.21%	-1.30%
Tejon Ranch	3.32%	0.35%	0.27%

Summary

Tejon Ranch beats J. W. Mays on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About J. W. Mays

J.W. Mays, Inc. owns, operates, and leases commercial real estate properties in United States. The company's properties are located in Brooklyn, Jamaica, Fishkill, Levittown, and Massapequa of New York; and Circleville of Ohio. The company was founded in 1924 and is based in Brooklyn, New York.

About Tejon Ranch

Tejon Ranch Co., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a diversified real estate development and agribusiness company. It operates through five segments: Commercial/Industrial Real Estate Development, Resort/Residential Real Estate Development, Mineral Resources, Farming, and Ranch Operations. The Commercial/Industrial Real Estate Development segment engages in the planning and permitting of land for development; construction of infrastructure projects, pre-leased buildings, and buildings to be leased or sold; and sale of land to third parties for their own development. It is also involved in the activities related to communications leases, a power plant lease, and landscape maintenance. This segment leases land to various auto service stations with convenience stores, fast-food operations, service diner-style restaurant, a motel, an antique shop, and a post office; various microwave repeater locations, radio and cellular transmitter sites, and fiber optic cable routes; and package of land for an electric power plant. The Resort/Residential Real Estate Development segment engages in land entitlement, planning, pre-construction engineering, stewardship, and conservation activities. The Mineral Resources segment includes oil and gas royalties, rock and aggregate royalties, and royalties from a cement operation leased to National Cement Company of California, Inc.; and the management of water assets and infrastructure projects. The Farming segment farms permanent crops, such as wine grapes, almonds, and pistachios in package of land. It also manages the farming of alfalfa and forage mix on package of land in the Antelope Valley; and leases package of land for growing vegetables, as well as almonds. The Ranch Operations segment provides game management and ancillary land services comprising grazing leases and filming, as well as various guided hunts. Tejon Ranch Co. was founded in 1843 and is based in Lebec, California.