Sysco (NYSE:SYY) versus TreeHouse Foods (NYSE:THS) Head-To-Head Comparison

TreeHouse Foods (NYSE:THS) and Sysco (NYSE:SYY) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Risk & Volatility

TreeHouse Foods has a beta of 0.25, suggesting that its stock price is 75% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sysco has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

99.8% of TreeHouse Foods shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.4% of Sysco shares are held by institutional investors. 11.1% of TreeHouse Foods shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of Sysco shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for TreeHouse Foods and Sysco, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
TreeHouse Foods	2	7	0	0	1.78
Sysco	0	6	9	0	2.60

TreeHouse Foods presently has a consensus target price of $24.67, indicating a potential upside of 3.93%. Sysco has a consensus target price of $87.00, indicating a potential upside of 15.52%. Given Sysco’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Sysco is more favorable than TreeHouse Foods.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares TreeHouse Foods and Sysco”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
TreeHouse Foods	$3.35 billion	0.36	$26.90 million	($4.80)	-4.94
Sysco	$82.03 billion	0.44	$1.83 billion	$3.73	20.19

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

Profitability

This table compares TreeHouse Foods and Sysco’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
TreeHouse Foods	-7.25%	5.52%	2.06%
Sysco	2.21%	112.04%	8.32%

Summary

Sysco beats TreeHouse Foods on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About TreeHouse Foods

TreeHouse Foods, Inc. manufactures and distributes private brands snacks and beverages in the United States and internationally. The company provides snacking products, such as crackers, pretzels, in-store bakery items, frozen griddle items, cookies, and candies; and beverage and drink mixes, including non-dairy creamer, coffee, broths/stocks, powdered beverages and other blends, tea, and ready-to-drink-beverages. It also offers groceries comprising pickles, refrigerated dough, hot cereal, and cheese and puddings, as well as natural, organic, and gluten-free products. The company sells its products through various distribution channels, including retailers, foodservice distributors, food-away-from-home customers, refrigerated and frozen formats, and co-manufacturers, as well as industrial and export, which includes food manufacturers and repackagers of foodservice products. TreeHouse Foods, Inc. was founded in 1862 and is based in Oak Brook, Illinois.

About Sysco

Sysco Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the marketing and distribution of various food and related products to the foodservice or food-away-from-home industry in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, France, and internationally. It operates through U.S. Foodservice Operations, International Foodservice Operations, SYGMA, and Other segments. The company distributes frozen food, such as meat, seafood, fully prepared entrées, fruits, vegetables, and desserts; canned and dry food products; fresh meat and seafood products; dairy products; beverages; imported specialties; and fresh produce products. It also supplies various non-food items, including paper products comprising disposable napkins, plates, and cups; tableware consisting of glassware and silverware; cookware, such as pots, pans, and utensils; restaurant and kitchen equipment and supplies; and cleaning supplies. The company serves restaurants, hospitals and nursing facilities, schools and colleges, hotels and motels, industrial caterers, and other foodservice venues. Sysco Corporation was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.