Critical Contrast: Universal Logistics (NASDAQ:ULH) and RXO (NYSE:RXO)

RXO (NYSE:RXO) and Universal Logistics (NASDAQ:ULH) are both transportation companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings and profitability.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

92.7% of RXO shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.5% of Universal Logistics shares are held by institutional investors. 2.8% of RXO shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 73.6% of Universal Logistics shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares RXO and Universal Logistics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
RXO	-1.25%	0.88%	0.43%
Universal Logistics	-2.46%	6.49%	2.26%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares RXO and Universal Logistics”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
RXO	$4.55 billion	0.53	-$290.00 million	($0.43)	-33.93
Universal Logistics	$1.85 billion	0.23	$129.91 million	($1.52)	-10.53

Universal Logistics has lower revenue, but higher earnings than RXO. RXO is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Universal Logistics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

RXO has a beta of 1.74, meaning that its stock price is 74% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Universal Logistics has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for RXO and Universal Logistics, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
RXO	4	11	4	0	2.00
Universal Logistics	1	2	0	0	1.67

RXO presently has a consensus target price of $16.14, suggesting a potential upside of 10.64%. Universal Logistics has a consensus target price of $17.00, suggesting a potential upside of 6.18%. Given RXO’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe RXO is more favorable than Universal Logistics.

Summary

RXO beats Universal Logistics on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About RXO

RXO, Inc. provides full truckload freight transportation brokering services. It also offers brokered services for managed transportation, last mile, and freight forwarding. The company was incorporated in 2022 and is based in Charlotte, North Carolina.

About Universal Logistics

Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. provides transportation and logistics solutions in the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Colombia. The company offers truckload services, which include dry van, flatbed, heavy-haul, and refrigerated operations; domestic and international freight forwarding, and customs brokerage services. It transports various commodities comprising automotive parts, machinery, building materials, paper, food, consumer goods, furniture, steel, and other metals. The company also provides value-added services for individual customer requirements, including material handling, consolidation, sequencing, sub-assembly, cross-dock, kitting, repacking, warehousing, and returnable container management; and intermodal support services comprising short-to-medium distance delivery of steamship and rail truck containers between the port or railhead, and the customer. It serves automotive, steel, and other metals, retail and consumer goods, energy, and manufacturing industries, as well as other transportation companies who aggregate loads from various shippers. The company was formerly known as Universal Truckload Services, Inc. and changed its name to Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. in April 2016. Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1932 and is headquartered in Warren, Michigan.