Interparfums (NASDAQ:IPAR) versus Unicharm (OTCMKTS:UNICY) Financial Survey

Interparfums (NASDAQ:IPAR) and Unicharm (OTCMKTS:UNICY) are both mid-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Interparfums and Unicharm’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Interparfums	11.32%	15.47%	10.82%
Unicharm	6.33%	6.85%	5.01%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Interparfums and Unicharm, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Interparfums	0	3	4	1	2.75
Unicharm	0	1	0	1	3.00

Interparfums presently has a consensus target price of $106.00, suggesting a potential downside of 1.82%. Given Interparfums’ higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Interparfums is more favorable than Unicharm.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Interparfums and Unicharm”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Interparfums	$1.49 billion	2.32	$168.39 million	$5.27	20.49
Unicharm	$6.32 billion	1.57	$436.93 million	$0.12	23.75

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

55.6% of Interparfums shares are held by institutional investors. 43.7% of Interparfums shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Interparfums has a beta of 1.16, suggesting that its stock price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Unicharm has a beta of 0.32, suggesting that its stock price is 68% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Interparfums pays an annual dividend of $3.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. Unicharm pays an annual dividend of $0.03 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. Interparfums pays out 60.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Unicharm pays out 25.0% 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. Interparfums has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years. Interparfums is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Interparfums beats Unicharm on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Interparfums

Inter Parfums, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, markets, and distributes a range of fragrances and fragrance related products in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, European Based Operations and United States Based Operations. The company offers its fragrance and cosmetic products under the Boucheron, Coach, Jimmy Choo, Karl Lagerfeld, Kate Spade, Lanvin, Moncler, Montblanc, Rochas, S.T. Dupont, Van Cleef & Arpels, Abercrombie & Fitch, Anna Sui, Donna Karan, DKNY, Emanual Ungaro, Ferragamo, Graff, GUESS, Hollister, MCM, Oscar de la Renta, Ungaro, and Roberto Cavalli brands, as well as French Connection, Intimate, and Dunhill, Lacoste names. It sells its products to department stores, perfumeries, specialty stores, duty free shops, and domestic and international wholesalers, and distributors, as well as through e-commerce. The company was formerly known as Jean Philippe Fragrances, Inc. and changed its name to Inter Parfums, Inc. in July 1999. Inter Parfums, Inc. was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

About Unicharm

Unicharm Corporation engages in the manufacturing and sale of wellness, feminine, baby and children, kirei, and pet care products in Japan and internationally. The company's baby and child care products, including disposable diapers and wipes under the Moony, MamyPoko, Oyasumiman, and Torepanman brands; feminine care products comprise napkins, tampons, panty liners, sanitary short, panty liners, and other feminine care products under the Sofy, Center-In, and Unicharm brand names; and wellness care products include napkin-type incontinence pads, pants-type diapers, tape-type diapers, pants-type specialized urine pads, and tape-type specialized urine pads under the Lifree and Charmnap brand. It also provides masks under the Unicharm brand; home care products, including cleaning sheets under the Wave brand name; cosmetic cotton and wet wipes under the Silcot brand; and paper towels under the Cook Up brand name. In addition, the company offers pet care products that include pet foods, excrement cleanup sheets, system toilets, and disposable diapers under the Grand Deli, Best Balance, Physicalife Dog, Silver Plate, Aiken Genki, Manner Wear, Deo Sheet, Silver Spoon, AllWell, Physicalife Cat, Deo Toilet, Deo Sand, Deo Clean, and Neko Genki brands; and deodorizing beads. Further, it is involved in the manufacture and sale of industrial materials related products, etc., as well as food-packaging materials. Unicharm Corporation was incorporated in 1941 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.