SpartanNash (NASDAQ:SPTN – Get Free Report) and Farmer Brothers (NASDAQ:FARM – Get Free Report) are both small-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, valuation, risk, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and earnings.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares SpartanNash and Farmer Brothers”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| SpartanNash | $9.65 billion | 0.09 | $300,000.00 | ($0.32) | -82.91 |
| Farmer Brothers | $341.54 million | 0.10 | -$3.88 million | ($0.68) | -2.43 |
Institutional and Insider Ownership
84.6% of SpartanNash shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.5% of Farmer Brothers shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of SpartanNash shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 4.6% of Farmer Brothers 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.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for SpartanNash and Farmer Brothers, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| SpartanNash | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Farmer Brothers | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
SpartanNash presently has a consensus price target of $18.45, suggesting a potential downside of 30.46%. Farmer Brothers has a consensus price target of $4.50, suggesting a potential upside of 172.73%. Given Farmer Brothers’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Farmer Brothers is more favorable than SpartanNash.
Risk and Volatility
SpartanNash has a beta of 0.44, suggesting that its stock price is 56% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Farmer Brothers has a beta of 1.46, suggesting that its stock price is 46% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Profitability
This table compares SpartanNash and Farmer Brothers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| SpartanNash | -0.11% | 8.26% | 2.51% |
| Farmer Brothers | -4.20% | -26.00% | -6.06% |
About SpartanNash
SpartanNash Company distributes and retails grocery products in the United States of America. It operates through Wholesale and Retail segments. The Wholesale segment offers grocery products and perishable food products, including dry groceries, produce, dairy products, meat, delicatessen items, bakery goods, frozen food, seafood, floral products, general merchandise, beverages, tobacco products, health and beauty care, and pharmaceutical products to independent retailers, national accounts, food service distributors, e-commerce providers, and corporate owned retail stores. This segment offers various support services to independent retailers. The Retail segment operates retail stores, fuel centers, and pharmacies primarily under the banners of Family Fare, Martin’s Super Markets, D&W Fresh Market, VG’s Grocery, Family Fresh Market, Supermercado Nuestra Familia, Forest Hills Foods, Dillonvale IGA, and Fresh City Market. It supplies private brand products to military commissaries. The company was formerly known as Spartan Stores, Inc. and changed its name to SpartanNash Company in November 2013. SpartanNash Company was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
About Farmer Brothers
Farmer Bros. Co. engages in the roasting, wholesale, equipment servicing, and distribution of coffee, tea, and other allied products in the United States. The company offers roast and ground coffee; frozen liquid coffee; flavoured and unflavoured iced and hot teas; culinary products, including spices, pancake and biscuit mixes, gravy and sauce mixes, soup bases, dressings, and syrups and sauces, as well as coffee filters, cups, sugar, and creamers; and other beverages comprising cappuccino, cocoa, granitas, and other blender-based beverages and concentrated and ready-to-drink cold brew and iced coffee. It also engage installation, repair, and refurbishment services for an array of coffee, tea, and juice equipment. The company serves small independent restaurants, foodservice operators, and large institutional buyers and national account customers. The company distributes its products through direct-store-delivery network, and common carriers or third-party distributors, as well as website. The company was founded in 1912 and is headquartered in Northlake, Texas.
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