Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte (NASDAQ:OMAB) and Universal Logistics (NASDAQ:ULH) Head-To-Head Review

Universal Logistics (NASDAQ:ULH) and Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte (NASDAQ:OMAB) are both transportation companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, earnings, profitability, dividends, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Universal Logistics and Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Universal Logistics	3.66%	9.47%	3.49%
Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte	33.00%	52.90%	19.28%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Universal Logistics and Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Universal Logistics	$1.85 billion	0.27	$129.91 million	$2.33	8.17
Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte	$826.93 million	5.37	$237.12 million	$5.40	19.34

Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Universal Logistics. Universal Logistics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Universal Logistics and Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Universal Logistics	0	3	0	0	2.00
Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte	1	4	2	0	2.14

Universal Logistics currently has a consensus target price of $24.00, suggesting a potential upside of 26.05%. Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte has a consensus target price of $92.17, suggesting a potential downside of 11.74%. Given Universal Logistics’ higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Universal Logistics is more favorable than Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

25.5% of Universal Logistics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 9.5% of Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte shares are held by institutional investors. 73.6% of Universal Logistics shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Universal Logistics pays an annual dividend of $0.42 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte pays an annual dividend of $2.11 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Universal Logistics pays out 18.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte pays out 39.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Universal Logistics is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Risk and Volatility

Universal Logistics has a beta of 0.93, indicating that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte has a beta of 0.94, indicating that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte beats Universal Logistics on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Universal Logistics

Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. provides transportation and logistics solutions in the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Colombia. The company offers truckload services, which include dry van, flatbed, heavy-haul, and refrigerated operations; domestic and international freight forwarding, and customs brokerage services. It transports various commodities comprising automotive parts, machinery, building materials, paper, food, consumer goods, furniture, steel, and other metals. The company also provides value-added services for individual customer requirements, including material handling, consolidation, sequencing, sub-assembly, cross-dock, kitting, repacking, warehousing, and returnable container management; and intermodal support services comprising short-to-medium distance delivery of steamship and rail truck containers between the port or railhead, and the customer. It serves automotive, steel, and other metals, retail and consumer goods, energy, and manufacturing industries, as well as other transportation companies who aggregate loads from various shippers. The company was formerly known as Universal Truckload Services, Inc. and changed its name to Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. in April 2016. Universal Logistics Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1932 and is headquartered in Warren, Michigan.

About Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte

Grupo Aeroportuario del Centro Norte, S.A.B. de C.V., together with its subsidiaries, holds concessions to develop, operate, and maintain airports in Mexico. The company operates 13 international airports in Monterrey, Acapulco, Mazatlán, Zihuatanejo, Ciudad Juárez, Reynosa, Chihuahua, Culiacán, Durango, San Luis Potosí, Tampico, Torreón, and Zacatecas cities. It also operates the NH Collection Hotel in Terminal 2 of the Mexico City International Airport, and a hotel under the Hilton Garden Inn name at the Monterrey International Airport. In addition, the company provides aeronautical services, which include passenger, aircraft landing and parking, boarding and unloading, passenger walkway, and airport security services. Further, it offers complementary services that comprise leasing of space to airlines, cargo handling, baggage-screening, permanent and non-permanent ground transportation, and access rights services; non-aeronautical services, such as leasing of space at its airports to retailers, restaurants, and other commercial tenants, as well as maintaining of parking facilities and advertising; and diversification services, which consists of operation and lease of the industrial park and real estate services, as well as hotel and air cargo logistics services. Additionally, the company provides construction services. It has a strategic alliance with VYNMSA Desarrollo Inmobiliario, S.A. de C.V. to build and operate an industrial park at the Monterrey airport. The company was founded in 1998 and is headquartered in Mexico City, Mexico.