Fluor (NYSE:FLR) vs. VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) Critical Survey

VSE (NASDAQ:VSEC) and Fluor (NYSE:FLR) are both mid-cap construction companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings and valuation.

Risk & Volatility

VSE has a beta of 1.35, meaning that its stock price is 35% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fluor has a beta of 1.37, meaning that its stock price is 37% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

91.5% of VSE shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 88.1% of Fluor shares are held by institutional investors. 2.3% of VSE shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.7% of Fluor shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares VSE and Fluor’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
VSE	1.23%	7.64%	4.52%
Fluor	21.71%	8.32%	3.84%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for VSE and Fluor, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
VSE	0	1	7	0	2.88
Fluor	0	5	4	0	2.44

VSE currently has a consensus target price of $224.71, suggesting a potential upside of 5.33%. Fluor has a consensus target price of $49.57, suggesting a potential upside of 2.23%. Given VSE’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe VSE is more favorable than Fluor.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares VSE and Fluor”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
VSE	$1.08 billion	4.55	$15.32 million	$0.68	313.74
Fluor	$16.32 billion	0.48	$2.15 billion	$19.66	2.47

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

Summary

VSE beats Fluor on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About VSE

VSE Corporation operates as a diversified aftermarket products and services company in the United States. The company operates through two segments, Aviation and Fleet. The Aviation segment provides aftermarket parts supply and distribution; maintenance, repair, and overhaul services for components and engine accessories supporting commercial, business, and general aviation operators. This segment serves commercial airlines, regional airlines, cargo transporters, MRO integrators and providers, aviation manufacturers, corporate and private aircraft owners, and fixed-base operators. The Fleet segment offers parts supply, inventory management, e-commerce fulfillment, logistics, supply chain support, and other services to support the commercial aftermarket medium- and heavy-duty truck market. This segment also provides sale of vehicle parts and supply chain services to support client truck fleets, as well as sustainment solutions and managed inventory services to government and commercial truck fleets. VSE Corporation was incorporated in 1959 and is headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia.

About Fluor

Fluor Corporation provides engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC); fabrication and modularization; operation and maintenance; asset integrity; and project management services worldwide. The company operates through Energy Solutions, Urban Solutions, Mission Solutions, and Other segments. The Energy Solutions segment provides solutions to the energy transition markets, including asset decarbonization, carbon capture, renewable fuels, waste-to-energy, green chemicals, hydrogen, nuclear power, and other low-carbon energy sources. It also provides consulting services, including feasibility studies, process assessments, and project finance structuring; and a range of services for small modular reactor technologies, conventional and advanced nuclear reactor technologies. This segment serves the production and fuels, chemicals, LNG, power markets, chemicals and petrochemical industries. The Urban Solutions segment offers EPC and project management services to the infrastructure, advanced technologies, life sciences, and mining and metals industries. This segment also provides staffing services to the company and third-party clients with technical, professional, and craft resources on a contract or permanent placement basis. The Mission Solutions segment offers technical solutions to the U.S. and other governments. It also delivers solutions for nuclear security and operation, nuclear waste management, and laboratory management; and operation and maintenance, logistics, EPC, and life support solutions for mission-critical facilities across U.S. military service organizations. This segment offers site management, environmental remediation, and decommissioning for nuclear remediation at governmental facilities, as well as services to commercial nuclear clients. Fluor Corporation was founded in 1912 and is headquartered in Irving, Texas.