Comparing Kikkoman (OTCMKTS:KIKOF) and Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT)

Freshpet (NASDAQ:FRPT) and Kikkoman (OTCMKTS:KIKOF) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation and risk.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Freshpet and Kikkoman, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Freshpet	1	7	10	0	2.50
Kikkoman	0	0	0	0	0.00

Freshpet presently has a consensus target price of $75.31, suggesting a potential upside of 6.34%. Given Freshpet’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Freshpet is more favorable than Kikkoman.

Profitability

This table compares Freshpet and Kikkoman’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Freshpet	17.28%	5.97%	4.07%
Kikkoman	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider & Institutional Ownership

17.9% of Kikkoman shares are held by institutional investors. 4.3% of Freshpet shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Freshpet and Kikkoman”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Freshpet	$1.10 billion	3.16	$139.14 million	$3.80	18.64
Kikkoman	N/A	N/A	N/A	$66.31	0.15

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

Summary

Freshpet beats Kikkoman on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Freshpet

Freshpet, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, distributes, and markets natural fresh meals and treats for dogs and cats in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It sells dog food, cat food, and dog treats under the Freshpet brand name; and Dognation and Dog Joy labels through various classes of retail, including grocery, mass, club, pet specialty, and natural, as well as online. The company was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in Secaucus, New Jersey.

About Kikkoman

Kikkoman Corporation, through its subsidiaries, manufactures and sells food products in Japan and internationally. It offers soy sauces, soy sauce soup bases, dipping and marinade sauces, and Del Monte seasonings; soy milk and Del Monte beverages; mirin and wines. The company also manufactures and sells canned fruits, corn products, and tomato ketchup; health foods; and purchases and sells oriental food products, as well as other products. In addition, it produces and sells clinical diagnostic reagents, hygiene inspection agents, and processing enzymes, as well as chemical products, including hyaluronic acid; and offers real estate rental, logistics, and back-office support services. The company was formerly known as Kikkoman Shoyu Co., Ltd. and changed its name to Kikkoman Corporation in 1980. Kikkoman Corporation was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Noda, Japan.