Reviewing Knife River (NYSE:KNF) & Owens Corning (NYSE:OC)

Owens Corning (NYSE:OC) and Knife River (NYSE:KNF) are both mid-cap construction companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk and valuation.

Volatility & Risk

Owens Corning has a beta of 1.31, indicating that its stock price is 31% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Knife River has a beta of 0.53, indicating that its stock price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Owens Corning and Knife River”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Owens Corning	$11.66 billion	0.80	$647.00 million	($5.72)	-19.80
Knife River	$2.90 billion	1.46	$201.68 million	$2.61	28.67

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

Profitability

This table compares Owens Corning and Knife River’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Owens Corning	2.98%	24.49%	8.85%
Knife River	4.87%	9.97%	4.41%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

88.4% of Owens Corning shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 80.1% of Knife River shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of Owens Corning shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Knife River shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Owens Corning and Knife River, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Owens Corning	2	5	10	0	2.47
Knife River	0	1	6	0	2.86

Owens Corning currently has a consensus price target of $157.67, indicating a potential upside of 39.23%. Knife River has a consensus price target of $99.00, indicating a potential upside of 32.28%. Given Owens Corning’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Owens Corning is more favorable than Knife River.

Summary

Owens Corning beats Knife River on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Owens Corning

Owens Corning manufactures and sells building and construction materials in the United States, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. It operates in three segments: Roofing, Insulation, and Composites. The Roofing segment manufactures and sells laminate and strip asphalt roofing shingles, oxidized asphalt materials, and roofing components used in residential and commercial construction, and specialty applications. This segment sells its products through distributors, home centers, and lumberyards, as well as to roofing contractors for built-up roofing asphalt systems; and manufacturers in automotive, chemical, rubber, and construction industries. The Insulation segment manufactures and sells thermal and acoustical batts, loosefill insulation, spray foam insulation, foam sheathing and accessories under the Owens Corning PINK, and FIBERGLAS brands; and glass fiber pipe insulation, energy efficient flexible duct media, bonded and granulated mineral wool insulation, cellular glass insulation, and foam insulation under the FOAMULAR, FOAMGLAS, and Paroc brand names used in construction applications. This segment sells its products primarily to the insulation installers, home centers, lumberyards, retailers, and distributors. The Composites segment manufactures, fabricates, and sells glass reinforcements in the form of fiber; and glass fiber products in the form of fabrics, non-wovens, and composite lumber. Its products are used in building structures, roofing shingles, tubs and showers, pools, decking, flooring, pipes and tanks, poles, electrical equipment, and wind-energy turbine blades. This segment sells its products directly to parts molders, fabricators, and shingle manufacturers. The company was incorporated in 1938 and is headquartered in Toledo, Ohio.

About Knife River

Knife River Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides aggregates- led construction materials and contracting services in the United States. It operates through Pacific, Northwest, Mountain, Central, and Energy Services segments. The company mines, processes, and sells construction aggregates, including crushed stone and sand, and gravel; and produces and sells asphalt and ready-mix concrete. It also provides contracting service, such as heavy-civil construction, asphalt and concrete paving, and site development and grading. In addition, the company sells cement, merchandise, and other building materials and related services. The company sells its construction materials to public and private-sector customers, including federal, state, and municipal governments, as well as industrial, commercial and residential developers, and other private parties; and provides its contracting services to public-sector customers for the development and servicing of highways, local roads, bridges, and other public-infrastructure projects. Knife River Corporation was founded in 1917 and is based in Bismarck, North Dakota.