Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) versus Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) Head-To-Head Survey

Matthews International (NASDAQ:MATW) and Service Corporation International (NYSE:SCI) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, earnings, dividends, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

Matthews International has a beta of 1.24, suggesting that its stock price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Service Corporation International has a beta of 0.92, suggesting that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Matthews International and Service Corporation International, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Matthews International	0	0	1	0	3.00
Service Corporation International	0	0	4	0	3.00

Matthews International presently has a consensus target price of $40.00, suggesting a potential upside of 90.20%. Service Corporation International has a consensus target price of $89.25, suggesting a potential upside of 13.67%. Given Matthews International’s higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Matthews International is more favorable than Service Corporation International.

Profitability

This table compares Matthews International and Service Corporation International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Matthews International	-4.62%	11.04%	2.66%
Service Corporation International	12.58%	32.35%	3.05%

Dividends

Matthews International pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.8%. Service Corporation International pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Matthews International pays out -39.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Service Corporation International pays out 35.2% 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. Matthews International has raised its dividend for 30 consecutive years and Service Corporation International has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years. Matthews International is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

83.1% of Matthews International shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 85.5% of Service Corporation International shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.1% of Matthews International shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.4% of Service Corporation International shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Matthews International and Service Corporation International”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Matthews International	$1.80 billion	0.36	-$59.66 million	($2.55)	-8.25
Service Corporation International	$4.19 billion	2.67	$518.65 million	$3.64	21.57

Service Corporation International has higher revenue and earnings than Matthews International. Matthews International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Service Corporation International, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Service Corporation International beats Matthews International on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Matthews International

Matthews International Corporation provides brand solutions, memorialization products, and industrial technologies worldwide. It operates through three segments: Memorialization, Industrial Technologies, and SGK Brand Solutions. The Memorialization segment provides bronze and granite memorials, upright granite memorials and monuments, concrete burial vaults, cremation memorialization products, granite benches, flower vases, crypt plates and letters, cremation urns, niche units, cemetery features, and statues, as well as bronze plaques, letters, emblems, vases, lights and photo ceramics, granite monuments, mausoleums, crypts, and flush memorials. The Industrial Technologies segment designs, manufactures, services, and distributes high-tech custom energy storage solutions, and product identification and warehouse automation technologies and solutions, including order fulfillment systems for identifying, tracking, picking, and conveying consumer and industrial products. This segment also provides engineered calendaring, laminating, and coating equipment; stand-alone marking products; laser and ink-jet printing systems; and spare parts, calendar, and coating-roller refurbishing and retrofits. The SGK Brand solutions segment provides brand management, pre-media services, printing plates and cylinders, imaging services, digital asset management, merchandising display systems, and marketing and design services for the consumer goods and retail industries. The company was founded in 1850 and is based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

About Service Corporation International

Service Corp. International engages in the provision of funeral goods and services. It operates through the Funeral and Cemetery segments. The Funeral segment offers services related to cremations, including the use of home facilities and motor vehicles, arranging and directing services, removal, preparation, embalming, memorialization, and catering. The Cemetery segment provides property interment rights, including lawn crypts, mausoleum spaces, niches, and interment options. The company was founded by Robert L. Waltrip in July 1962 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.