American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD – Get Free Report) and International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF – Get Free Report) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, dividends, earnings and institutional ownership.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for American Vanguard and International Flavors & Fragrances, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| American Vanguard | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
| International Flavors & Fragrances | 1 | 4 | 13 | 0 | 2.67 |
American Vanguard currently has a consensus target price of $12.00, suggesting a potential upside of 450.71%. International Flavors & Fragrances has a consensus target price of $90.09, suggesting a potential upside of 26.74%. Given American Vanguard’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe American Vanguard is more favorable than International Flavors & Fragrances.
Profitability
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| American Vanguard | -9.68% | -5.13% | -1.76% |
| International Flavors & Fragrances | -3.20% | 7.67% | 4.07% |
Institutional & Insider Ownership
79.0% of American Vanguard shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.0% of International Flavors & Fragrances shares are held by institutional investors. 7.6% of American Vanguard shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of International Flavors & Fragrances 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.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares American Vanguard and International Flavors & Fragrances”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| American Vanguard | $515.11 million | 0.12 | -$49.88 million | ($1.75) | -1.25 |
| International Flavors & Fragrances | $10.89 billion | 1.67 | -$361.00 million | ($1.37) | -51.89 |
American Vanguard has higher earnings, but lower revenue than International Flavors & Fragrances. International Flavors & Fragrances is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than American Vanguard, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk and Volatility
American Vanguard has a beta of 1.23, meaning that its share price is 23% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, International Flavors & Fragrances has a beta of 0.99, meaning that its share price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
International Flavors & Fragrances beats American Vanguard on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About American Vanguard
American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals for agricultural, commercial, and consumer uses in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and formulates chemicals, including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, soil health, plant nutrition, molluscicides, growth regulators, soil fumigants, and biorationals in liquid, powder, and granular forms for crops, turf and ornamental plants, and human and animal health protection. The company also markets, sells, and distributes end-use chemical and biological products for crop applications; and distributes chemicals for turf and ornamental markets. It distributes its products through national distribution companies, and buying groups or co-operatives; and through sales offices, sales force executives, sales agents, and wholly owned distributors. American Vanguard Corporation was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in Newport Beach, California.
About International Flavors & Fragrances
International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. engages in the manufacture and supply of flavors and fragrances used in the food, beverage, personal care, and household products industries. It operates through the following segments: Nourish, Health & Biosciences, Scent and Pharma Solutions. The Nourish segment consists of legacy Taste segment combined with N&B’s Food & Beverage division and the food protection business of N&B’s Health & Biosciences division. The Health & Biosciences business consists of a biotechnology-driven portfolio of enzymes, food cultures, probiotics and specialty ingredients for food, home and personal care, and health and wellness applications. The Scent business creates fragrance compounds, fragrance ingredients and cosmetic ingredients that are integral elements in the world’s finest perfumes and best-known household and personal care products. The Pharma Solutions business produces a vast portfolio including cellulosics and seaweed-based pharma excipients, used to improve the functionality and delivery of active pharmaceutical ingredients, including controlled or modified drug release formulations, and enabling. The company was founded in 1833 and is headquartered in New York, NY.
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