Reliance (NYSE:RS – Get Free Report) and Global Industrial (NYSE:GIC – Get Free Report) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership and valuation.
Risk & Volatility
Reliance has a beta of 0.96, indicating that its share price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Global Industrial has a beta of 0.75, indicating that its share price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Reliance and Global Industrial”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Reliance | $14.29 billion | 1.36 | $739.40 million | $17.20 | 22.21 |
| Global Industrial | $1.38 billion | 1.07 | $72.10 million | $2.24 | 17.27 |
Reliance has higher revenue and earnings than Global Industrial. Global Industrial is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Reliance, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Reliance and Global Industrial, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Reliance | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2.33 |
| Global Industrial | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2.50 |
Reliance presently has a consensus price target of $378.67, indicating a potential downside of 0.86%. Given Reliance’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Reliance is more favorable than Global Industrial.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
79.3% of Reliance shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 31.2% of Global Industrial shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of Reliance shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 64.5% of Global Industrial shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Profitability
This table compares Reliance and Global Industrial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Reliance | 5.65% | 12.51% | 8.47% |
| Global Industrial | 6.06% | 21.49% | 11.60% |
Dividends
Reliance pays an annual dividend of $5.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Global Industrial pays an annual dividend of $1.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Reliance pays out 29.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Global Industrial pays out 50.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Reliance has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years and Global Industrial has raised its dividend for 9 consecutive years.
Summary
Reliance beats Global Industrial on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Reliance
Reliance, Inc. operates as a diversified metal solutions provider and the metals service center company in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company distributes a line of approximately 100,000 metal products, including alloy, aluminum, brass, copper, carbon steel, stainless steel, titanium, and specialty steel products; and provides metals processing services to general manufacturing, non-residential construction, transportation, aerospace, energy, electronics and semiconductor fabrication, and heavy industries. It sells its products directly to original equipment manufacturers, which primarily include small machine shops and fabricators. The company was formerly known as Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. and changed its name to Reliance, Inc. in February 2024. Reliance, Inc. was founded in 1939 and is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.
About Global Industrial
Global Industrial Company operates as an industrial distributor of various industrial and maintenance, repair, and operation (MRO) products in North America. It offers storage and shelving, safety and security, carts and trucks, HVAC and fans, furniture and decor, material handling, janitorial and facility maintenance, workbenches and shop desks, tools and instruments, plumbing and pumps, office and school supplies, packaging and shipping, lighting and electrical, foodservice and retail, medical and laboratory, motors and power transmission, building supplies, machining, fasteners and hardware, vehicle maintenance, and raw materials. The company offers industrial and MRO products under the Global, GlobalIndustrial.com, Nexel, Paramount, Interion, and Absocold trademarks. It serves businesses; state, local, and private educational organizations; and government entities through relationship marketers, e-commerce sites, signature campaigns, and catalogs. The company was formerly known as Systemax Inc. Global Industrial Company was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Port Washington, New York.
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