Limbach (NASDAQ:LMB) & Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA) Head-To-Head Comparison

Granite Construction (NYSE:GVA) and Limbach (NASDAQ:LMB) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and dividends.

Risk & Volatility

Granite Construction has a beta of 1.32, indicating that its share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Limbach has a beta of 1.42, indicating that its share price is 42% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

55.8% of Limbach shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.9% of Granite Construction shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 7.0% of Limbach shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Granite Construction and Limbach’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Granite Construction	-3.32%	27.83%	7.17%
Limbach	4.42%	23.22%	11.48%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Granite Construction and Limbach”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Granite Construction	$4.42 billion	1.18	$193.00 million	($4.31)	-27.61
Limbach	$646.80 million	0.93	$39.06 million	$2.50	20.20

Granite Construction has higher revenue and earnings than Limbach. Granite Construction is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Limbach, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Granite Construction and Limbach, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Granite Construction	2	1	2	1	2.33
Limbach	2	1	2	0	2.00

Granite Construction currently has a consensus target price of $158.50, suggesting a potential upside of 33.18%. Limbach has a consensus target price of $70.25, suggesting a potential upside of 39.11%. Given Limbach’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Limbach is more favorable than Granite Construction.

Summary

Limbach beats Granite Construction on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Granite Construction

Granite Construction Incorporated operates as an infrastructure contractor in the United States. It operates through two segments: Construction and Materials segments. The Construction segment engages in the construction and rehabilitation of roads, pavement preservation, bridges, rail lines, airports, marine ports, dams, reservoirs, aqueducts, infrastructure, and site development for use by the public and water-related construction for municipal agencies, commercial water suppliers, industrial facilities, and energy companies; and construction of various complex projects, including infrastructure/site development, mining, public safety, tunnel, solar storage, and power related projects. The Materials segment is involved in the production of aggregates, asphalt concrete, liquid asphalt, and recycled materials production for internal use in our construction projects and sale to third parties. It also offers site preparation, mining, and infrastructure services for residential development, energy development, commercial and industrial sites, railways, residential development, and energy development; and provides construction management professional services. It serves federal agencies, state departments of transportation, local transit authorities, county and city public works departments, school districts and developers, utilities, contractors, landscapers, manufacturers of products requiring aggregate materials, retailers, homeowners, farmers, brokers, and private owners of industrial, commercial, and residential sites. Granite Construction Incorporated was incorporated in 1922 and is headquartered in Watsonville, California.

About Limbach

Limbach Holdings, Inc. operates as a building systems solution company in the United States. It operates through two segments, General Contractor Relationships and Owner Direct Relationships. The company engages in the construction and renovation projects that involve primarily include mechanical, plumbing, and electrical services. It also provides critical system repair, MEP infrastructure projects, maintenance contracts, building automation upgrades, data driven insights, and program management services. In addition, it offers captive engineering capabilities, estimating and virtual design; and professional engineering, energy analysis, estimation, and detail design and three-dimensional building installation coordination services. The company serves research, acute care, and inpatient hospitals; public and private colleges, universities, research centers; sports arenas; entertainment facilities, and amusement rides and parks; data centers; automotive, energy and general manufacturing plants; and life sciences, including organizations and companies, whose work is centered around research and development focused on living things. Limbach Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1901 and is headquartered in Warrendale, Pennsylvania.