Head-To-Head Review: Core & Main (CNM) vs. Its Peers

Core & Main (NYSE:CNM) is one of 157 publicly-traded companies in the “Trading Companies & Distributors” industry, but how does it contrast to its competitors? We will compare Core & Main to similar businesses based on the strength of its earnings, valuation, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Core & Main and its competitors gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Core & Main	$7.65 billion	$441.00 million	19.62
Core & Main Competitors	$6.61 billion	$363.16 million	33.55

Core & Main has higher revenue and earnings than its competitors. Core & Main is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its competitors, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

94.2% of Core & Main shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 50.5% of shares of all “Trading Companies & Distributors” companies are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of Core & Main shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 17.3% of shares of all “Trading Companies & Distributors” companies are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Core & Main and its competitors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Core & Main	5.96%	25.98%	8.53%
Core & Main Competitors	1.07%	-34.33%	3.54%

Risk and Volatility

Core & Main has a beta of 0.91, meaning that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Core & Main’s competitors have a beta of 1.32, meaning that their average share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Core & Main and its competitors, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Core & Main	1	5	8	0	2.50
Core & Main Competitors	1467	4919	6718	241	2.43

Core & Main currently has a consensus price target of $54.27, indicating a potential upside of 13.85%. As a group, “Trading Companies & Distributors” companies have a potential upside of 9.23%. Given Core & Main’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Core & Main is more favorable than its competitors.

Summary

Core & Main beats its competitors on 9 of the 13 factors compared.

Core & Main Company Profile

Core & Main, Inc. is a specialty distributor focused on water, wastewater, storm drainage and fire protection products, and related services. The company provides infrastructure solutions to municipalities, private water companies and professional contractors across municipal, non-residential, and residential end markets, nationwide. The company was founded in 1874 and is headquartered in St. Louis, MO.