Critical Comparison: V.F. (VFC) versus The Competition

V.F. (NYSE:VFC) is one of 117 publicly-traded companies in the “Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods” industry, but how does it contrast to its rivals? We will compare V.F. to similar companies based on the strength of its risk, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and valuation.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for V.F. and its rivals, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
V.F.	1	13	5	2	2.38
V.F. Competitors	1645	7622	10042	356	2.46

V.F. presently has a consensus price target of $18.14, indicating a potential upside of 5.31%. As a group, “Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods” companies have a potential upside of 20.27%. Given V.F.’s rivals stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe V.F. has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals.

Risk and Volatility

V.F. has a beta of 1.56, indicating that its stock price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, V.F.’s rivals have a beta of 1.90, indicating that their average stock price is 90% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares V.F. and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
V.F.	2.88%	18.91%	3.26%
V.F. Competitors	-3.63%	13.46%	2.56%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

86.8% of V.F. shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 54.4% of shares of all “Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods” companies are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of V.F. shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 15.1% of shares of all “Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods” companies are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

V.F. pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. V.F. pays out 52.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Textiles, Apparel & Luxury Goods” companies pay a dividend yield of 3.6% and pay out 23.3% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. V.F. lags its rivals as a dividend stock, given its lower dividend yield and higher payout ratio.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares V.F. and its rivals top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
V.F.	$9.51 billion	$254.92 million	24.96
V.F. Competitors	$5.63 billion	$471.75 million	23.96

V.F. has higher revenue, but lower earnings than its rivals. V.F. is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Summary

V.F. rivals beat V.F. on 8 of the 15 factors compared.

V.F. Company Profile

VF Corp. engages in the business of producing and marketing apparel, footwear, and accessories. It operates through the following segments: Outdoor, Active, Work, and Other. The Outdoor segment includes authentic outdoor-based lifestyle brands such as performance-based and outdoor apparel, footwear, and equipment. The Active segment focuses on activity-based lifestyle brands including active apparel, footwear, backpacks, luggage, and accessories. The Work segment offers work and work-inspired lifestyle brands with product offerings including apparel, footwear, and accessories. The Other segment refers to the sale of non-VF products and sourcing activities related to transition services. The company was founded by John Barbey in October 1899 and is headquartered in Denver, CO.