Reviewing Hammerson (OTCMKTS:HMSNF) and WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC)

WillScot (NASDAQ:WSC) and Hammerson (OTCMKTS:HMSNF) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

95.8% of WillScot shares are held by institutional investors. 3.1% of WillScot 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 & Earnings

This table compares WillScot and Hammerson”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
WillScot	$2.27 billion	2.26	-$52.99 million	($0.38)	-74.82
Hammerson	$278.73 million	7.83	$306.07 million	N/A	N/A

Hammerson has lower revenue, but higher earnings than WillScot.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for WillScot and Hammerson, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
WillScot	1	7	3	0	2.18
Hammerson	0	3	1	0	2.25

WillScot presently has a consensus price target of $25.88, indicating a potential downside of 8.99%. Given WillScot’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe WillScot is more favorable than Hammerson.

Profitability

This table compares WillScot and Hammerson’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
WillScot	-2.99%	20.65%	3.31%
Hammerson	N/A	N/A	N/A

Risk & Volatility

WillScot has a beta of 1.34, indicating that its stock price is 34% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hammerson has a beta of 0.98, indicating that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

WillScot beats Hammerson on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About WillScot

WillScot Holdings Corporation provides workspace and portable storage solutions in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It operates in two segments, Modular Solutions and Storage Solutions. Its modular solutions include panelized and stackable offices, single-wide modular space units, section modulars and redi-plex, classrooms, ground level offices, blast-resistant modules, clearspan structures, and other modular space; and portable storage solutions, such as portable and cold storage containers, as well as trailers. The company leases modular space and portable storage units to customers in the construction, commercial and industrial, retail and wholesale trade, energy and natural resources, education, government and institutions, and healthcare markets. The company offers its solutions primarily under the WillScot and Mobile Mini brand names. The company was formerly known as WillScot Mobile Mini Holdings Corp. and changed its name to WillScot Holdings Corporation in July 2024. WillScot Mobile Mini Holdings Corp. is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.

About Hammerson

Hammerson is a cities business. An owner, operator and developer of prime urban real estate, with a portfolio value of £4.7billion (as at 30 June 2023), in some of the fastest growing cities in the UK, Ireland and France. Our portfolio and adjacent lands leverage our experience and capabilities to create and manage exceptional city centre destinations with the opportunity to drive value and reshape entire neighbourhoods. Our assets are high profile and play an important role in our communities, welcoming c. 175 million visitors each year and supporting 20,000+ jobs though our retail, dining and social occupiers. These destinations include Bullring in Birmingham, The Oracle in Reading, Dundrum Estate, Dublin and Terraces du Port in Marseille. We also hold investments in Value Retail, best-in-class villages such as Bicester Village, Oxfordshire. Hammerson also holds 80 acres of attractive pre-development and strategic land. This includes complementary adjacent land, creating optionality to enhance both the scale and diversity of the existing estate, and stand-alone land opportunities. These include Martineau Galleries in Birmingham and Bishopsgate Goodsyard, Shoreditch.