Comparing Paul Mueller (OTCMKTS:MUEL) & Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD)

Middleby (NASDAQ:MIDD) and Paul Mueller (OTCMKTS:MUEL) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, earnings and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Middleby and Paul Mueller’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Middleby	-5.22%	14.66%	7.20%
Paul Mueller	12.37%	36.21%	18.19%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Middleby and Paul Mueller”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Middleby	$3.88 billion	1.94	$428.43 million	($4.40)	-33.84
Paul Mueller	$248.59 million	1.52	$29.67 million	$40.20	10.45

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Middleby and Paul Mueller, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Middleby	1	1	5	1	2.75
Paul Mueller	0	0	0	0	0.00

Middleby presently has a consensus target price of $163.83, indicating a potential upside of 10.03%. Given Middleby’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Middleby is more favorable than Paul Mueller.

Volatility & Risk

Middleby has a beta of 1.39, suggesting that its stock price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Paul Mueller has a beta of 0.11, suggesting that its stock price is 89% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

98.6% of Middleby shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.2% of Middleby shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.0% of Paul Mueller shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Middleby beats Paul Mueller on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Middleby

The Middleby Corporation designs, markets, manufactures, distributes, and services foodservice, food processing, and residential kitchen equipment worldwide. Its Commercial Foodservice Equipment Group segment offers conveyor, combi, convection, baking, proofing, deck, speed cooking, and hydrovection ovens; ranges, fryers, and rethermalizers; steam cooking, food warming, catering, induction cooking, and countertop cooking equipment; heated cabinets, charbroilers, ventless cooking systems, kitchen ventilation, toasters, griddles, charcoal grills, professional mixers, stainless steel fabrication, custom millwork, professional refrigerators, blast chillers, cold rooms, ice machines, and freezers; soft serve ice cream, coffee and beverage dispensing, home and professional craft brewing equipment; and fry dispensers, bottle filling and canning equipment, IoT solutions, and controls development and manufacturing. The company's Food Processing Equipment Group segment provides batch, baking, proofing, conveyor belt, and continuous processing ovens; frying and automated thermal processing systems; tumblers, massagers, grinders, slicers, reduction and emulsion systems, mixers, and blenders; battering, breading, and seeding equipment; water cutting systems, food presses, food suspension equipment, filling and depositing solutions, and forming equipment; and automated washing systems, auto-guided vehicles, food safety, food handling, freezing, and defrosting and packaging equipment. Its Residential Kitchen Equipment Group segment offers kitchen equipment comprising cookers, stoves, cooktops, microwaves, ovens, refrigerators, dishwashers, undercounter refrigeration, wine cellars, ice machines, beer dispensers, mixers, rotisseries, and ventilation and outdoor cooking equipment. The company was formerly known as Middleby Marshall Oven Company and changed its name to The Middleby Corporation in 1985. The company was founded in 1888 and is based in Elgin, Illinois.

About Paul Mueller

Paul Mueller Company, together with its subsidiaries, provides manufactured equipment and components in the United States, North America, Asia, the Far East, the Netherlands, EU countries, Europe, and internationally. The company operates through four reportable segments: Dairy Farm Equipment, Industrial Equipment, Field Fabrication, and Transportation. The Dairy Farm Equipment segment offers milk cooling and storage equipment and accessories, refrigeration units, and heat recovery equipment for use on dairy farms to independent dealers for resale, and directly to farmers; and services for farmers, as well as milk coolers for rent to farmers. The Industrial Equipment segment sells food, beverage, chemical, and industrial processing equipment; and biopharmaceutical and pure water equipment, as well as stainless steel, alloy processing, storage tanks, and heat transfer products. The Field Fabrication segment sells large, field-fabricated tanks and vessels, such as stainless steel storage tanks for sanitary and industrial process applications. The Transportation segment offers delivery of products to customers; backhauls of materials and components; and contract carriage for third parties. It serves its products in various industries, including animal health, beverage, brewing, chemical, dairy farm, dairy processing, food, heat transfer, HVAC, industrial construction, oil and gas, personal care, pharmaceutical, pure water, tank fabrication, and wine. The company was founded in 1940 and is headquartered in Springfield, Missouri.