Financial Survey: Taylor Devices (NASDAQ:TAYD) vs. Hurco Companies (NASDAQ:HURC)

Taylor Devices (NASDAQ:TAYD) and Hurco Companies (NASDAQ:HURC) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, dividends, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Taylor Devices and Hurco Companies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Taylor Devices	17.50%	9.64%	8.90%
Hurco Companies	-3.58%	-3.37%	-2.51%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Taylor Devices and Hurco Companies”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Taylor Devices	$39.03 million	4.56	$8.56 million	$2.07	26.60
Hurco Companies	$178.55 million	0.77	-$15.12 million	($1.03)	-20.55

Taylor Devices has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Hurco Companies. Hurco Companies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Taylor Devices, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Taylor Devices has a beta of 0.94, meaning that its stock price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hurco Companies has a beta of 0.71, meaning that its stock price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Taylor Devices and Hurco Companies, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Taylor Devices	0	3	0	1	2.50
Hurco Companies	1	0	0	0	1.00

Taylor Devices currently has a consensus target price of $65.00, suggesting a potential upside of 18.03%. Given Taylor Devices’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Taylor Devices is more favorable than Hurco Companies.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

17.6% of Taylor Devices shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 74.4% of Hurco Companies shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.7% of Taylor Devices shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 9.9% of Hurco Companies shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Taylor Devices beats Hurco Companies on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Taylor Devices

Taylor Devices, Inc. engages in design, development, manufacture, and marketing of shock absorption, rate control, and energy storage devices for use in machinery, equipment, and structures in the United States, Asia, and internationally. Its products include seismic dampers that are designed to mitigate the effects of earthquakes on structures; Fluidicshoks, which are compact shock absorbers primarily used in defense, aerospace, and commercial industries; and crane and industrial buffers, which are larger versions of the Fluidicshoks for industrial application on cranes and crane trolleys, truck docks, ladle and ingot cars, ore trolleys, and train car stops. The company's products also comprise self-adjusting shock absorbers that include versions of Fluidicshoks, and crane and industrial buffers, which automatically adjust to various impact conditions and are designed for high cycle application primarily in the heavy industry; liquid die springs that are used as component parts of machinery and equipment used in the manufacture of tools and dies; vibration dampers, which are primarily used by aerospace and defense industries to control the response of electronics and optical systems subjected to air, ship, or spacecraft vibration; machined springs used in the aerospace applications; and custom actuators for special aerospace and defense applications. It markets its products through a network of sales representatives and distributors. The company was incorporated in 1955 and is headquartered in North Tonawanda, New York.

About Hurco Companies

Hurco Companies, Inc., an industrial technology company, designs, manufactures, and sells computerized machine tools to companies in the metal cutting industry worldwide. Its principal products include general-purpose computerized machine tools, including vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers, and toolroom machines. The company also provides computer control systems and related software for press brake applications. In addition, it offers machine tool components, automation integration equipment, and solutions for job shops; and software options, control upgrades, and accessories and replacement parts for its products, as well as customer service, training, and applications support services. Further, the company provides Autobend computer control systems for press brake machines. It serves independent job shops and specialized short-run production applications within large manufacturing operations, as well as precision tool, die, and mold manufacturers in aerospace, defense, medical equipment, energy, automotive/transportation, electronics, and computer industries. The company sells its products under the Hurco, Milltronics, and Takumi brands through independent agents and distributors, as well as through its direct sales and service organizations. Hurco Companies, Inc. was incorporated in 1968 and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.