Head-To-Head Survey: Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) and SiteOne Landscape Supply (NYSE:SITE)

SiteOne Landscape Supply (NYSE:SITE) and Applied Industrial Technologies (NYSE:AIT) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, valuation, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

93.5% of Applied Industrial Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. 2.1% of SiteOne Landscape Supply shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of Applied Industrial Technologies shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares SiteOne Landscape Supply and Applied Industrial Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SiteOne Landscape Supply	3.41%	9.76%	4.83%
Applied Industrial Technologies	8.35%	22.17%	13.43%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for SiteOne Landscape Supply and Applied Industrial Technologies, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SiteOne Landscape Supply	1	6	5	0	2.33
Applied Industrial Technologies	0	0	6	1	3.14

SiteOne Landscape Supply presently has a consensus price target of $121.00, suggesting a potential upside of 33.78%. Applied Industrial Technologies has a consensus price target of $400.00, suggesting a potential upside of 20.12%. Given SiteOne Landscape Supply’s higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe SiteOne Landscape Supply is more favorable than Applied Industrial Technologies.

Volatility & Risk

SiteOne Landscape Supply has a beta of 1.38, indicating that its stock price is 38% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Applied Industrial Technologies has a beta of 0.85, indicating that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares SiteOne Landscape Supply and Applied Industrial Technologies”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SiteOne Landscape Supply	$4.70 billion	0.84	$155.40 million	$3.65	24.78
Applied Industrial Technologies	$4.97 billion	2.46	$414.52 million	$10.96	30.38

Applied Industrial Technologies has higher revenue and earnings than SiteOne Landscape Supply. SiteOne Landscape Supply is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Applied Industrial Technologies, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Applied Industrial Technologies beats SiteOne Landscape Supply on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SiteOne Landscape Supply

SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the wholesale distribution of landscape supplies in the United States and Canada. The company provides irrigation products, including controllers, valves, sprinkler heads, irrigation pipes, micro irrigation, and drip products; fertilizer, grass seed, and ice melt products; control products, such as herbicides, fungicides, rodenticides, and other pesticides; landscape accessories that include mulches, soil amendments, drainage pipes, tools, and sods; nursery goods, which consist of deciduous and evergreen shrubs, ornamental, shade, evergreen trees, field grown and container-grown nursery stock, roses, perennials, annuals, bulbs, and plant species and cultivars; hardscapes, such as pavers, natural stones, blocks, and other durable materials; and outdoor lighting products that include lighting fixtures, LED lamps, wires, transformers, and accessories. It also offers consultative services consisting of assistance with irrigation project take-offs, commercial project planning, generation of sales leads, business operations, and product support services, as well as a series of technical and business management seminars; and distributes branded products of third parties. The company offers its products under the LESCO, SiteOne Green Tech, and Pro-Trade brand names. It markets its products primarily to residential and commercial landscape professionals who specializes in the design, installation, and maintenance of lawns, gardens, golf courses, and other outdoor spaces through branch network and direct distribution. SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc. was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in Roswell, Georgia.

About Applied Industrial Technologies

Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. distributes industrial motion, power, control, and automation technology solutions in North America, Australia, New Zealand, and Singapore. It operates in two segments, Service Center Based Distribution, and Engineered Solutions. The company distributes bearings, power transmission products, engineered fluid power components and systems, specialty flow control solutions, advanced automation products, industrial rubber products, linear motion components, automation solutions, tools, safety products, oilfield supplies, and other industrial and maintenance supplies; and motors, belting, drives, couplings, pumps, hydraulic and pneumatic components, filtration supplies, valves, fittings, process instrumentation, actuators, and hoses, filtration supplies, as well as other related supplies for general operational needs of customers' machinery and equipment. It also operates fabricated rubber shops and service field crews that install, modify, and repair conveyor belts and rubber linings, as well as offer hose assemblies. In addition, the company provides technical support services; engages in the distribution of fluid power and industrial flow control products; advanced automation solutions, including machine vision, robotics, motion control, and smart technologies. It distributes industrial products through a network of service centers. The company serves various industries, including agriculture and food processing, cement, chemicals and petrochemicals, fabricated metals, forest products, industrial machinery and equipment, life sciences, mining, oil and gas, primary metals, technology, transportation, and utilities, as well as government entities. The company was formerly known as Bearings, Inc. and changed its to name to Applied Industrial Technologies, Inc. in 1997. The company was founded in 1923 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.