PetIQ (PETQ) vs. Nu Skin Enterprises (NUS) Critical Review

Nu Skin Enterprises (NYSE: NUS) and PetIQ (NASDAQ:PETQ) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, valuation and risk.

Analyst Ratings

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This is a summary of current recommendations for Nu Skin Enterprises and PetIQ, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Nu Skin Enterprises	2	1	2	0	2.00
PetIQ	0	0	6	0	3.00

Nu Skin Enterprises presently has a consensus target price of $72.60, suggesting a potential downside of 9.34%. PetIQ has a consensus target price of $28.00, suggesting a potential upside of 34.87%. Given PetIQ’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe PetIQ is more favorable than Nu Skin Enterprises.

Profitability

This table compares Nu Skin Enterprises and PetIQ’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Nu Skin Enterprises	5.74%	25.36%	11.54%
PetIQ	0.17%	11.39%	6.69%

Dividends

Nu Skin Enterprises pays an annual dividend of $1.46 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. PetIQ does not pay a dividend. Nu Skin Enterprises pays out 45.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Nu Skin Enterprises has increased its dividend for 17 consecutive years.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

76.8% of Nu Skin Enterprises shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 67.0% of PetIQ shares are held by institutional investors. 5.2% of Nu Skin Enterprises shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 45.3% of PetIQ shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Nu Skin Enterprises and PetIQ’s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Nu Skin Enterprises	$2.28 billion	1.95	$129.43 million	$3.23	24.79
PetIQ	$266.69 million	1.91	-$3.49 million	$0.39	53.23

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

Summary

Nu Skin Enterprises beats PetIQ on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

Nu Skin Enterprises Company Profile

Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. develops and distributes anti-aging personal care products and nutritional supplements under the Nu Skin and Pharmanex category brands worldwide. It provides skin care systems and targeted treatment products, including ageLOC Me customized skin care systems, ageLOC Spa systems, and ageLOC LumiSpa skin treatment and cleansing devices; and Epoch products, as well as a range of other cosmetic, personal care, and hair care products. The company also offers ageLOC Youth nutritional supplements, ageLOC TR90 weight management and body shaping systems, and LifePak nutritional supplements, as well as other anti-aging nutritional solutions and weight management products. In addition, it is involved in the research and product development of skin care products and nutritional supplements. Further, the company operates walk-in centers and pick-up locations; and retail stores and service centers in Mainland China. The company sells its products directly, as well as through distributors and Website. Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Provo, Utah.

PetIQ Company Profile

PetIQ, Inc. develops, manufactures, and distributes pet medications, and health and wellness products for dogs and cats in the United States, Canada, and Europe. It offers pet prescription medications, including products for arthritis, thyroid, and diabetes and pain treatments, as well as heartworm preventatives, antibiotics, and other specialty medications; over-the-counter medications and supplies, such as flea and tick control products in various forms comprising spot on treatments, chewables, and collars; and health and wellness products consisting of specialty treats and other pet products, which include dental treats and nutritional supplements. The company provides its products primarily under the VetIQ, PetAction Plus, Advecta, PetLock Plus, and TruProfen brands. It sells its products through distributors as well as through retail stores, including approximately 40,000 retail pharmacy locations. PetIQ, Inc. was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Eagle, Idaho.