Head-To-Head Analysis: J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF) & Seneca Foods (NASDAQ:SENEA)

Seneca Foods (NASDAQ:SENEA) and J & J Snack Foods (NASDAQ:JJSF) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, dividends and institutional ownership.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

42.5% of Seneca Foods shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 76.0% of J & J Snack Foods shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.4% of Seneca Foods shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 20.4% of J & J Snack Foods shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Seneca Foods and J & J Snack Foods’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Seneca Foods	3.73%	9.68%	5.03%
J & J Snack Foods	4.14%	8.73%	6.06%

Risk & Volatility

Seneca Foods has a beta of 0.13, meaning that its share price is 87% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, J & J Snack Foods has a beta of 0.34, meaning that its share price is 66% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Seneca Foods and J & J Snack Foods”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Seneca Foods	$1.58 billion	0.50	$41.22 million	$8.62	13.51
J & J Snack Foods	$1.58 billion	1.13	$65.60 million	$3.35	28.12

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Seneca Foods and J & J Snack Foods, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Seneca Foods	0	0	1	0	3.00
J & J Snack Foods	1	2	1	0	2.00

J & J Snack Foods has a consensus target price of $132.50, indicating a potential upside of 40.64%. Given J & J Snack Foods’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe J & J Snack Foods is more favorable than Seneca Foods.

Summary

J & J Snack Foods beats Seneca Foods on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Seneca Foods

Seneca Foods Corporation provides packaged fruits and vegetables in the United States and internationally. The company offers canned, frozen, and jarred produce; jarred fruit; and snack chips and other food products under the private label, as well as under various national and regional brands that the company owns or licenses, including Seneca, Libby’s, Aunt Nellie’s, Cherryman, Green Valley, and READ. In addition, it packs canned and frozen vegetables under contract packing agreements. Further, the company engages in the sale of cans, ends, and seeds, as well as trucking and aircraft operations. It provides its products to grocery outlets, including supermarkets, mass merchandisers, limited assortment stores, club stores, and dollar stores; specialty retailers; and food service distributors, restaurant chains, industrial markets, other food packagers, and export customers in approximately 55 countries, as well as federal, state, and local governments for school and other feeding programs. Seneca Foods Corporation was incorporated in 1949 and is headquartered in Fairport, New York.

About J & J Snack Foods

J&J Snack Foods Corp. engages in the manufacturing of nutritional snack foods and distribution of frozen beverages to the food service and retail supermarket industries. It operates through the following segments: Food Service, Retail Supermarkets, and Frozen Beverages. The Food Service segment includes soft pretzels, frozen novelties, churros, handheld products, and baked goods. The Retail Supermarkets segment offers soft pretzel products including Superpretzel, frozen juice treats and desserts, including Luigi’s real Italian ice, Minute Maid juice bars and soft frozen lemonade, Whole Fruit frozen fruit bars and sorbet, Philly Swirl cups and sticks, ICEE Squeeze-Up Tubes and dough enrobed handheld products including Patio burritos. The Frozen Beverages segment provides frozen beverages to the food service industry primarily under the names ICEE, SLUSH PUPPIE, and PARROT ICE in the United States, Mexico, and Canada, as well as repair and maintenance services. The company was founded by Gerald B. Shreiber in 1971 and is headquartered in Mount Laurel, NJ.