Critical Comparison: Myers Industries (NYSE:MYE) & Silgan (NYSE:SLGN)

Myers Industries (NYSE:MYE) and Silgan (NYSE:SLGN) are both materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability, dividends and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Myers Industries and Silgan’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Myers Industries	4.86%	19.86%	6.88%
Silgan	4.05%	16.74%	4.09%

Volatility and Risk

Myers Industries has a beta of 0.83, meaning that its share price is 17% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Silgan has a beta of 0.67, meaning that its share price is 33% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Myers Industries and Silgan”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Myers Industries	$844.62 million	1.42	$34.93 million	$0.97	32.96
Silgan	$6.48 billion	0.57	$288.40 million	$2.55	13.74

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Myers Industries and Silgan, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Myers Industries	0	1	2	0	2.67
Silgan	0	3	8	1	2.83

Myers Industries currently has a consensus price target of $37.00, suggesting a potential upside of 15.74%. Silgan has a consensus price target of $52.60, suggesting a potential upside of 50.12%. Given Silgan’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Silgan is more favorable than Myers Industries.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

90.8% of Myers Industries shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 70.3% of Silgan shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.8% of Myers Industries shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Silgan shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Myers Industries pays an annual dividend of $0.54 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Silgan pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Myers Industries pays out 55.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Silgan pays out 32.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Silgan has raised its dividend for 22 consecutive years. Silgan is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Silgan beats Myers Industries on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Myers Industries

Myers Industries, Inc. engages in distribution of tire service supplies in Ohio. It operates through two segments, The Material Handling and Distribution. The Material Handling segment offers pallets, small parts bins, bulk shipping containers, and OEM parts, as well as storage and organization, and custom plastic products; and injection molded, rotationally molded or blow molded products, consumer fuel containers and tanks for water, fuel, and waste handling. It serves industrial manufacturing, food processing, retail/wholesale products distribution, agriculture, automotive, recreational and marine vehicles, healthcare, appliance, bakery, electronics, textiles, consumer markets, and other markets under Akro-Mils, Jamco, Buckhorn, Ameri-Kart, Scepter, Elkhart Plastics, Trilogy Plastics, and Signature Systems brands directly to end-users, as well as through distributors. The Distribution segment engages in the distribution of tools, equipment, and supplies for tire, wheel, and under-vehicle service on passenger, heavy truck, and off-road vehicles; and manufacture and sale of tire repair materials and custom rubber products, as well as reflective highway marking tapes under the Myers Tire Supply, Myers Tire Supply International, Tuffy Manufacturing, Mohawk Rubber Sales, Patch Rubber Company, Elrick, Fleetline, MTS, Seymoure, Advance Traffic Markings, and MXP brands. This segment serves retail and truck tire dealers, commercial auto and truck fleets, auto dealers, general service and repair centers, tire re-treaders, truck stop operations, and government agencies. Myers Industries, Inc. was founded in 1933 and is headquartered in Akron, Ohio.

About Silgan

Silgan Holdings Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells rigid packaging solutions for consumer goods products in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Dispensing and Specialty Closures, Metal Containers, and Custom Containers. The Dispensing and Specialty Closures segment offers a range of metal and plastic closures, and dispensing systems for food, beverage, health care, garden, home, personal care, beauty products, and hard surface cleaning products, as well as capping/sealing equipment and detection systems. The Metal Containers segment manufactures and sells steel and aluminum containers for food products, such as pet food, vegetables, soups, proteins, fruits, and other miscellaneous food products, as well as general line metal containers primarily for chemicals. The Custom Containers segment manufactures and sells custom designed and stock plastic containers for use in personal care and health care; food and beverage; household and industrial chemical; pharmaceutical; pet food and care; agricultural; automotive. This segment also provides thermoformed barrier and non-barrier bowls, and trays for food products, such as soups, other ready-to-eat meals, and pet food products; and plastic closures, caps, sifters, and fitments, as well as thermoformed tubs for food, household, and personal care products. The company markets its products primarily through direct sales force, as well as through a network of distributors, and an online shopping catalog. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.