Head-To-Head Survey: Westport Fuel Systems (NASDAQ:WPRT) & Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI)

Westport Fuel Systems (NASDAQ:WPRT) and Valmont Industries (NYSE:VMI) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Westport Fuel Systems and Valmont Industries, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Westport Fuel Systems	1	2	1	0	2.00
Valmont Industries	0	2	4	0	2.67

Westport Fuel Systems currently has a consensus target price of $1.82, indicating a potential upside of 1.39%. Valmont Industries has a consensus target price of $587.00, indicating a potential upside of 32.12%. Given Valmont Industries’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Valmont Industries is more favorable than Westport Fuel Systems.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

21.3% of Westport Fuel Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.8% of Valmont Industries shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of Westport Fuel Systems shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.4% of Valmont Industries shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Westport Fuel Systems has a beta of 2.12, indicating that its share price is 112% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Valmont Industries has a beta of 1.34, indicating that its share price is 34% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Westport Fuel Systems and Valmont Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Westport Fuel Systems	-493.15%	-51.88%	-37.23%
Valmont Industries	11.70%	25.57%	12.44%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Westport Fuel Systems and Valmont Industries”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Westport Fuel Systems	$23.32 million	1.34	-$61.63 million	($2.41)	-0.75
Valmont Industries	$4.10 billion	2.09	$334.78 million	$25.68	17.30

Valmont Industries has higher revenue and earnings than Westport Fuel Systems. Westport Fuel Systems is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Valmont Industries, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Valmont Industries beats Westport Fuel Systems on 12 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Westport Fuel Systems

Westport Fuel Systems Inc. engages in the engineering, manufacturing, and supplying alternative fuel systems and components for use in transportation applications in Europe, Asia, North America, South America, and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Original Equipment Manufacturers and Independent Aftermarket. It offers alternative fuel systems and components, such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), renewable natural gas or biomethane, and hydrogen; and pressure regulators, injectors, electronic control units, valves and filters, complete bi-fuel, mono-fuel and dual-fuel LPG and natural gas conversion kits and high-pressure hydrogen components. The company provides Westport’s LNG high pressure direct injection 2.0 fuel system and bi-fuel products; offers turnkey solutions covering all process phases, including prototyping, development, calibration, validation, homologation, vehicle conversion and logistic services, as well as systems for diesel-powered vehicles; and supplies hydrogen fuel system components for light, medium, and heavy-duty applications. It offers its products under the AFS, BRC, Emer, GFI, HPDI, Stako, Prins, Zavoli, OMVL, TA Gas Technology, Vialle, and Valtek brands. The company was formerly known as Westport Innovations Inc. and changed its name to Westport Fuel Systems Inc. in June 2016. Westport Fuel Systems Inc. was incorporated in 1995 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About Valmont Industries

Valmont Industries, Inc. operates as manufacturer of products and services for infrastructure and agriculture markets in the United States, Australia, Brazil, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Infrastructure and Agriculture. The company manufactures and distributes steel, pre-stressed concrete, composite structures for electrical transmission, substation, and distribution applications; and designs, engineers, and manufactures metal, steel, wood, aluminum, and composite poles and structures for lighting and transportation applications. It also offers galvanizing, anodizing, painting, and powder coating services for paint products; towers, small cell structures, camouflage concealment solutions, passive intermodulation mitigation equipment, and components for wireless communication markets; and solar single-axis tracker product, an integrated system of steel structures, electric motors, and electronic controllers, as well as provides coatings services to preserve metal products. In addition, the company manufactures center pivot components and linear irrigation equipment for the agricultural markets, such as parts and tubular products for industrial customers; advanced technology solutions for agricultural sector; mechanical irrigation equipment and service parts under the Valley brand name. It serves municipalities and government entities, commercial lighting fixtures manufacturing companies, contractors, telecommunications and utility companies, and farmers, as well as the general manufacturing sector. Valmont Industries, Inc. was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska.