Critical Review: CRH (NYSE:CRH) versus United States Lime & Minerals (NASDAQ:USLM)

United States Lime & Minerals (NASDAQ:USLM) and CRH (NYSE:CRH) are both materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and risk.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

27.1% of United States Lime & Minerals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.5% of CRH shares are held by institutional investors. 1.5% of United States Lime & Minerals shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of CRH shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

United States Lime & Minerals has a beta of 0.73, indicating that its share price is 27% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CRH has a beta of 1.33, indicating that its share price is 33% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares United States Lime & Minerals and CRH”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United States Lime & Minerals	$372.73 million	8.81	$134.27 million	$4.67	24.50
CRH	$38.63 billion	1.49	$3.73 billion	$5.67	15.30

CRH has higher revenue and earnings than United States Lime & Minerals. CRH is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than United States Lime & Minerals, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for United States Lime & Minerals and CRH, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United States Lime & Minerals	0	1	0	0	2.00
CRH	1	1	13	2	2.94

CRH has a consensus target price of $139.57, suggesting a potential upside of 60.90%. Given CRH’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe CRH is more favorable than United States Lime & Minerals.

Dividends

United States Lime & Minerals pays an annual dividend of $0.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. CRH pays an annual dividend of $1.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. United States Lime & Minerals pays out 5.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. CRH pays out 27.5% 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. United States Lime & Minerals has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares United States Lime & Minerals and CRH’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United States Lime & Minerals	35.66%	20.76%	19.24%
CRH	9.93%	15.76%	6.64%

Summary

CRH beats United States Lime & Minerals on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United States Lime & Minerals

United States Lime & Minerals, Inc. engages in the manufacture and sale of lime and limestone products. Its products include High Calcium Quicklime, Hydrated Lime, Lime Kiln Dust, Lime Slurry, and High Calcium Limestone. The company was founded in 1948 and is headquartered in Dallas, TX.

About CRH

CRH plc, together with its subsidiaries, provides building materials solutions in Ireland and internationally. It operates through four segments: Americas Materials Solutions, Americas Building Solutions, Europe Materials Solutions, and Europe Building Solutions. The company provides solutions for the construction and maintenance of public infrastructure and commercial and residential buildings; and produces and sells aggregates, cement, readymixed concrete, and asphalt, as well as provides paving and construction services. It also manufactures, supplies, and delivers solutions for the built environment in communities across North America; and offers building and infrastructure solutions serving complex critical utility infrastructure, such as water, energy, transportation, and telecommunications projects, and outdoor living solutions for enhancing private and public spaces. In addition, the company combines materials, products, and services to produce a wide range of architectural and infrastructural solutions for use in the building and renovation of critical utility infrastructure, commercial and residential buildings, and outdoor living spaces for the built environment. Further, it produces and supplies precast and pre-stressed concrete products comprising floor and wall elements, beams, vaults, pipes, and manholes; granite, limestone, and sandstone; concrete and polymer-based products, such as underground vaults, drainage systems, utility enclosures, and modular precast structures; engineered steel, polymer-based anchoring, fixing, and connecting solutions; concrete masonry, hardscape and related products, including pavers, blocks and curbs, retaining walls, and slabs; and fencing and railing systems, composite decking, lawn and garden products, and packaged concrete mixes. The company was founded in 1936 and is headquartered in Dublin, Ireland.