Titan Machinery (NASDAQ:TITN) vs. United Rentals (NYSE:URI) Financial Contrast

United Rentals (NYSE:URI) and Titan Machinery (NASDAQ:TITN) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and risk.

Volatility and Risk

United Rentals has a beta of 1.8, suggesting that its share price is 80% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Titan Machinery has a beta of 1.41, suggesting that its share price is 41% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

96.3% of United Rentals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 78.4% of Titan Machinery shares are held by institutional investors. 0.5% of United Rentals shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 10.8% of Titan Machinery shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for United Rentals and Titan Machinery, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Rentals	1	0	16	1	2.94
Titan Machinery	1	1	0	0	1.50

United Rentals currently has a consensus target price of $1,246.19, indicating a potential upside of 17.73%. Titan Machinery has a consensus target price of $17.00, indicating a potential downside of 9.62%. Given United Rentals’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe United Rentals is more favorable than Titan Machinery.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares United Rentals and Titan Machinery”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Rentals	$16.10 billion	4.09	$2.49 billion	$41.64	25.42
Titan Machinery	$2.43 billion	0.18	-$54.17 million	($2.35)	-8.00

United Rentals has higher revenue and earnings than Titan Machinery. Titan Machinery is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than United Rentals, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares United Rentals and Titan Machinery’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Rentals	15.67%	31.72%	9.47%
Titan Machinery	-2.28%	-8.44%	-2.91%

Summary

United Rentals beats Titan Machinery on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Rentals

United Rentals, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as an equipment rental company. It operates in two segments, General Rentals and Specialty. The General Rentals segment rents general construction and industrial equipment includes backhoes, skid-steer loaders, forklifts, earthmoving equipment, and material handling equipment; aerial work platforms, such as boom and scissor lifts; and general tools and light equipment comprising pressure washers, water pumps, and power tools for construction and industrial companies, manufacturers, utilities, municipalities, homeowners, and government entities. The specialty segment rents specialty construction products, including trench safety equipment consists of trench shields, aluminum hydraulic shoring systems, slide rails, crossing plates, construction lasers, and line testing equipment for underground work; power and heating, ventilating, and air conditioning equipment, such as portable diesel generators, electrical distribution equipment, and temperature control equipment; fluid solutions equipment for fluid containment, transfer, and treatment; and mobile storage equipment and modular office space. This segment serves construction companies involved in infrastructure projects, and municipalities and industrial companies. It also sells aerial lifts, reach forklifts, telehandlers, compressors, and generators; construction consumables, tools, small equipment, and safety supplies; and parts for equipment that is owned by its customers, as well as provides repair and maintenance services. The company sells used equipment through its sales force, brokers, website, at auctions, and directly to manufacturers. The company operates in the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, and New Zealand. United Rentals, Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.

About Titan Machinery

Titan Machinery Inc. owns and operates a network of full service agricultural and construction equipment stores in the United States, Europe, and Australia. It operates through four segments: Agriculture, Construction, Europe, and Australia. The company sells new and used equipment, including agricultural and construction equipment manufactured under the CNH Industrial family of brands, as well as equipment from various other manufacturers. Its agricultural equipment includes machinery and attachments for use in the production of food, fiber, feed grain, feed stock, and renewable energy; and home and garden applications, as well as maintenance of commercial, residential, and government properties. The company’s construction equipment comprises heavy construction machinery, light industrial machinery for commercial and residential construction, and road and highway construction machinery. It also sells maintenance and replacement parts. In addition, the company offers repair and maintenance services that include warranty repairs, off-site and on-site repair services, scheduling off-season maintenance services, and notifying customers of periodic service requirements; and training programs to customers. Further, it rents equipment; and provides ancillary equipment support services, such as equipment transportation, global positioning system signal subscriptions and other precision farming products, farm data management products, and CNH Industrial finance and insurance products. The company operates in Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Missouri, Washington, Iowa, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Wisconsin, and Wyoming, the United States; Bulgaria, Germany, Romania, and Ukraine, Europe; and New South Wales, South Australia, and Victoria, Australia. Titan Machinery Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in West Fargo, North Dakota.