Comparing Marine Harvest ASA (OTCMKTS:MHGVY) & Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (NASDAQ:RMCF)

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory (NASDAQ:RMCF) and Marine Harvest ASA (OTCMKTS:MHGVY) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Marine Harvest ASA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory	-19.84%	-100.52%	-26.22%
Marine Harvest ASA	11.19%	11.74%	5.29%

Dividends

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 52.6%. Marine Harvest ASA pays an annual dividend of $0.75 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory pays out -78.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Marine Harvest ASA pays out 52.8% 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. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

50.3% of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory shares are held by institutional investors. 25.2% of Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Marine Harvest ASA”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory	$27.24 million	0.32	-$4.56 million	($0.61)	-1.49
Marine Harvest ASA	$6.47 billion	1.77	$708.93 million	$1.42	15.27

Marine Harvest ASA has higher revenue and earnings than Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Marine Harvest ASA, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory has a beta of 0.76, indicating that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Marine Harvest ASA has a beta of 0.92, indicating that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Marine Harvest ASA, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory	1	0	0	0	1.00
Marine Harvest ASA	0	3	0	2	2.80

Summary

Marine Harvest ASA beats Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory

Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a confectionery franchisor, manufacturer, and retail operator. It operates through Franchising, Manufacturing, Retail Stores, and Other segments. The company produces approximately 400 chocolate candies and other confectionery products, including clusters, caramels, creams, toffees, mints, and truffles; and offers 15 varieties of caramel apples and other products that are prepared in individual stores, as well as provides ice cream, coffee, and other sundries. Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory, Inc. was founded in 1981 and is headquartered in Durango, Colorado.

About Marine Harvest ASA

Mowi ASA, a seafood company, farms, produces, and supplies Atlantic salmon products worldwide. It operates through three segments: Feed, Farming, and Sales and Marketing. The company is involved in the salmon feed production, salmon farming and primary processing, and seafood secondary processing activities. It offers whole fish, plain and marinated fillets and steaks, hot- and cold-smoked salmon, burgers and tartars, patties, gravad, sushi, and breaded products under the Ducktrap, MOWI, and Supreme Salmon brands. The company was formerly known as Marine Harvest ASA and changed its name to Mowi ASA in December 2018. Mowi ASA was founded in 1964 and is headquartered in Bergen, Norway.