Financial Contrast: Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) and Unicharm (OTCMKTS:UNICY)

Central Garden & Pet (NASDAQ:CENTA) and Unicharm (OTCMKTS:UNICY) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, profitability, risk, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Central Garden & Pet and Unicharm, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Central Garden & Pet	1	2	2	1	2.50
Unicharm	0	0	0	2	4.00

Central Garden & Pet currently has a consensus target price of $44.00, suggesting a potential upside of 28.50%. Given Central Garden & Pet’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Central Garden & Pet is more favorable than Unicharm.

Profitability

This table compares Central Garden & Pet and Unicharm’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Central Garden & Pet	5.42%	11.55%	5.04%
Unicharm	6.93%	7.50%	5.44%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Central Garden & Pet and Unicharm”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Central Garden & Pet	$3.13 billion	0.68	$162.84 million	$2.45	13.98
Unicharm	$6.32 billion	1.71	$436.93 million	$0.13	23.85

Unicharm has higher revenue and earnings than Central Garden & Pet. Central Garden & Pet is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Unicharm, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

50.8% of Central Garden & Pet shares are owned by institutional investors. 20.3% of Central Garden & Pet shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Central Garden & Pet has a beta of 0.59, suggesting that its share price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Unicharm has a beta of 0.31, suggesting that its share price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Unicharm beats Central Garden & Pet on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Central Garden & Pet

Central Garden & Pet Co. engages in the production and distribution of branded and private label products for the lawn, garden, and pet supplies markets. It operates through the Pet and Garden segments. The Pet segment focuses on dog and cat supplies such as dog treats and chews, toys, pet beds and containment, grooming products, waste management and training pads, supplies for aquatics, small animals, reptiles and pet birds including toys, cages and habitats, bedding, food and supplements, products for equine and livestock, animal and household health and insect control products, live fish, and small animals, as well as outdoor cushions. The Garden segment includes lawn and garden consumables such as grass, vegetable, flower and herb seed, wild bird feed, bird houses and other birding accessories, weed, grass, and other herbicides, insecticide and pesticide products, fertilizers, and live plants. The company was founded by William E. Brown in 1980 and is headquartered in Walnut Creek, CA.

About Unicharm

Unicharm Corporation engages in the manufacturing and sale of wellness, feminine, baby and children, kirei, and pet care products in Japan and internationally. The company's baby and child care products, including disposable diapers and wipes under the Moony, MamyPoko, Oyasumiman, and Torepanman brands; feminine care products comprise napkins, tampons, panty liners, sanitary short, panty liners, and other feminine care products under the Sofy, Center-In, and Unicharm brand names; and wellness care products include napkin-type incontinence pads, pants-type diapers, tape-type diapers, pants-type specialized urine pads, and tape-type specialized urine pads under the Lifree and Charmnap brand. It also provides masks under the Unicharm brand; home care products, including cleaning sheets under the Wave brand name; cosmetic cotton and wet wipes under the Silcot brand; and paper towels under the Cook Up brand name. In addition, the company offers pet care products that include pet foods, excrement cleanup sheets, system toilets, and disposable diapers under the Grand Deli, Best Balance, Physicalife Dog, Silver Plate, Aiken Genki, Manner Wear, Deo Sheet, Silver Spoon, AllWell, Physicalife Cat, Deo Toilet, Deo Sand, Deo Clean, and Neko Genki brands; and deodorizing beads. Further, it is involved in the manufacture and sale of industrial materials related products, etc., as well as food-packaging materials. Unicharm Corporation was incorporated in 1941 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.