Comparing Stantec (NYSE:STN) and APi Group (NYSE:APG)

APi Group (NYSE:APG) and Stantec (NYSE:STN) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, valuation, risk, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares APi Group and Stantec”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
APi Group	$7.91 billion	2.41	$302.00 million	($0.67)	-65.91
Stantec	$8.55 billion	0.95	$343.11 million	$3.21	22.60

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

Insider & Institutional Ownership

86.6% of APi Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 63.9% of Stantec shares are owned by institutional investors. 18.7% of APi Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Stantec shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

APi Group has a beta of 1.57, meaning that its stock price is 57% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Stantec has a beta of 1.01, meaning that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares APi Group and Stantec’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
APi Group	3.99%	37.59%	14.07%
Stantec	5.91%	19.70%	8.07%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for APi Group and Stantec, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
APi Group	0	1	7	1	3.00
Stantec	0	2	5	0	2.71

APi Group presently has a consensus target price of $53.50, indicating a potential upside of 21.15%. Stantec has a consensus target price of $175.00, indicating a potential upside of 141.20%. Given Stantec’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Stantec is more favorable than APi Group.

Summary

APi Group beats Stantec on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About APi Group

APi Group Corporation provides safety and specialty services worldwide. It operates through Safety Services and Specialty Services segments. The Safety Services segment offers solutions focusing on end-to-end integrated occupancy systems, such as fire protection services; heating, ventilation, and air conditioning solutions; and entry systems, which include the design, installation, inspection, and service of these integrated systems. The Specialty Services segment provides various infrastructure and specialized industrial plant services, including maintenance and repair of underground electric, gas, water, sewer, and telecommunications infrastructure. This segment offers engineering and design, fabrication, installation, maintenance service and repair, retrofitting and upgrading services, pipeline infrastructure, access and road construction, supporting facilities, and integrity management and maintenance to the energy industry. It serves customers in the public and private sectors, including commercial, industrial, distribution and fulfillment centers, manufacturing, education, healthcare, telecom, utilities, transmission and integrity, high tech, entertainment, government, and infrastructure markets. The company was formerly known as J2 Acquisition Limited and changed its name to APi Group Corporation in October 2019. APi Group Corporation was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in New Brighton, Minnesota.

About Stantec

Stantec Inc. provides professional services in the areas of infrastructure and facilities to the public and private sectors in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It offers evaluation, planning, and designing infrastructure solutions; solutions for sustainable water resources, planning, management, and infrastructure; environmental services; integrated architecture, engineering, interior design, and planning solutions for buildings; and energy and resources solutions. The company also provides consulting services in engineering, architecture, interior design, landscape architecture, surveying, environmental sciences, project management, and project economics. In addition, it offers planning and design services to clients in residential, logistics, retail, infrastructure, energy, higher education, and urban regeneration sectors; architectural and interior design, and planning services in the science and technology, commercial workplace, higher education, residential, and hospitality markets. Further, the company provides transportation advisory, transport engineering, and technical design; project delivery consultancy services for mining, resources, and industrial infrastructure projects; paleontological and archaeological services for the rail, transportation, water, and power and energy sectors; and environmental and cultural resource compliance services. Additionally, it offers consulting services in sustainable building design, energy infrastructure upgrades, sustainable district heating network, and e-mobility; and planning, design, construction administration, commissioning, maintenance, decommissioning, and remediation services. The company was formerly known as Stanley Technology Group Inc. and changed its name to Stantec Inc. in October 1998. Stantec Inc. was founded in 1954 and is headquartered in Edmonton, Canada.