Reviewing Gibraltar Industries (NASDAQ:ROCK) & Grafton Group (OTCMKTS:GROUF)

Grafton Group (OTCMKTS:GROUF) and Gibraltar Industries (NASDAQ:ROCK) are both construction companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability and institutional ownership.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Grafton Group and Gibraltar Industries, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Grafton Group	0	0	1	0	3.00
Gibraltar Industries	1	1	0	0	1.50

Profitability

This table compares Grafton Group and Gibraltar Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Grafton Group	N/A	N/A	N/A
Gibraltar Industries	0.35%	12.58%	8.82%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Grafton Group and Gibraltar Industries”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Grafton Group	$2.92 billion	0.81	$155.92 million	N/A	N/A
Gibraltar Industries	$1.31 billion	1.11	$137.34 million	$0.08	616.50

Grafton Group has higher revenue and earnings than Gibraltar Industries.

Risk and Volatility

Grafton Group has a beta of 0.38, meaning that its stock price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gibraltar Industries has a beta of 1.28, meaning that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

8.2% of Grafton Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.4% of Gibraltar Industries shares are held by institutional investors. 0.5% of Gibraltar Industries shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Gibraltar Industries beats Grafton Group on 7 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Grafton Group

Grafton Group plc engages in the distribution, retailing, and manufacturing businesses in Ireland, the Netherlands, Finland, and the United Kingdom. Its Distribution segment distributes building materials, paint, tools, ironmongery, fixings, and accessories, workwear and PPE, and spare parts; materials and plant for mechanical services, heating, plumbing, and air movement; and trade, DIY, and self-build markets with building materials, timber, doors and floors, plumbing and heating, bathrooms, and landscaping products under the Selco, Leyland SDM, Chadwicks, MacBlair, Isero, Polvo, Gunters en Meuser, TG Lynes, and IKH brands. The company’s Retailing segment retails home and garden products through stores, including DIY products, paints, lighting products, homestyle products, housewares, bathroom products, and kitchens, as well as gardening and Christmas products under the Woodie’s brand. Its Manufacturing segment manufactures dry mortars and wooden staircases; and drainage, ducting and roofline systems under the CPI Mortar, StairBox, and MFP brand names. Grafton Group plc was founded in 1902 and is based in Dublin, Ireland.

About Gibraltar Industries

Gibraltar Industries, Inc. manufactures and provides products and services for the renewable energy, residential, agtech, and infrastructure markets in the United States and internationally. It operates through four segments: Renewables, Residential, Agtech, and Infrastructure. The Renewables segment designs, engineers, manufactures, and installs solar racking and electrical balance of systems for commercial and distributed generation scale solar installations. The Residential segment offers roof and foundation ventilation products and accessories; mail and electronic package solutions, including single mailboxes, cluster style mail and parcel boxes for single and multi-family housing, and electronic package locker systems; roof edgings and flashings; soffits and trims; drywall corner beads; metal roofing and accessories; rain dispersion products comprising gutters and accessories; and exterior retractable awnings. This segment also provides electronic parcel lockers, pipe flashings, and remote-controlled deck awnings and valances for sun protection. The Agtech segment offers growing and processing solutions, including the designing, engineering, manufacturing, construction, maintenance, and support of greenhouses; and indoor growing operations for retail, fruits and vegetables, flowers, cannabis, commercial, institutional and conservatories, and car wash structure applications. The Infrastructure segment offers expansion joints, structural bearings, rubber pre-formed seals and other sealants, elastomeric concrete, and bridge cable protection systems. It serves solar developers, home improvement retailers, wholesalers, distributors, and contractors, as well as institutional and commercial growers of fruit, vegetables, flowers, and plants. Gibraltar Industries, Inc. was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Buffalo, New York.