Reviewing 22nd Century Group (NASDAQ:XXII) and Universal (NYSE:UVV)

Universal (NYSE:UVV) and 22nd Century Group (NASDAQ:XXII) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Universal and 22nd Century Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Universal	-0.09%	1.88%	0.93%
22nd Century Group	-27.04%	-69.37%	-44.30%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

81.0% of Universal shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 18.1% of 22nd Century Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.2% of Universal shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of 22nd Century Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Universal and 22nd Century Group”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Universal	$2.92 billion	0.32	$32.64 million	($0.09)	-420.24
22nd Century Group	$17.59 million	0.00	-$5.05 million	($25,281.46)	-0.00

Universal has higher revenue and earnings than 22nd Century Group. Universal is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than 22nd Century Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Universal has a beta of 0.61, indicating that its share price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, 22nd Century Group has a beta of 0.76, indicating that its share price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Universal and 22nd Century Group, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Universal	2	0	0	0	1.00
22nd Century Group	1	0	0	0	1.00

Summary

Universal beats 22nd Century Group on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Universal

Universal Corporation is a global agricultural products and services company best known for sourcing, processing and supplying leaf tobacco to manufacturers. Its services include managing tobacco supply chains, from crop purchasing and processing to logistics and related support for customers. The company also operates an Ingredients Operations business, which supplies products such as dehydrated fruits and vegetables, flavors, extracts and other plant-based ingredients for food and beverage customers.

About 22nd Century Group

22nd Century Group, Inc. was a biotechnology company focused on developing tobacco products with reduced nicotine content. Its research centered on genetically modified tobacco plants and cigarette formulations designed to lower nicotine exposure and support smoking cessation or harm-reduction efforts. The company’s principal product was VLN cigarettes, which were made with very low nicotine tobacco and marketed as containing substantially less nicotine than conventional cigarettes. 22nd Century also historically developed and commercialized other reduced-nicotine cigarette products, including Quest, and pursued applications of its plant-science technology in the tobacco and cannabinoid sectors.