Head to Head Contrast: United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) & Bunzl (OTCMKTS:BZLFY)

United Natural Foods (NYSE:UNFI) and Bunzl (OTCMKTS:BZLFY) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and risk.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

87.6% of United Natural Foods shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.1% of Bunzl shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of United Natural Foods shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of Bunzl shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

United Natural Foods has a beta of 0.81, meaning that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bunzl has a beta of 0.86, meaning that its stock price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for United Natural Foods and Bunzl, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Natural Foods	1	6	3	0	2.20
Bunzl	0	5	0	0	2.00

United Natural Foods currently has a consensus price target of $43.63, suggesting a potential downside of 15.05%. Given United Natural Foods’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe United Natural Foods is more favorable than Bunzl.

Profitability

This table compares United Natural Foods and Bunzl’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Natural Foods	-0.25%	6.05%	1.27%
Bunzl	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares United Natural Foods and Bunzl”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Natural Foods	$31.78 billion	0.10	-$118.00 million	($1.30)	-39.50
Bunzl	$15.62 billion	0.66	$605.55 million	N/A	N/A

Bunzl has lower revenue, but higher earnings than United Natural Foods.

Summary

United Natural Foods beats Bunzl on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Natural Foods

United Natural Foods, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, distributes natural, organic, specialty, produce, and conventional grocery and non-food products in the United States and Canada. It operates in two segments, Wholesale and Retail. The company offers grocery and general merchandise, produce, perishables and frozen foods, wellness and personal care items, and bulk and foodservice products. It also provides nuts, dried fruit, seeds, trail mixes, granola, natural and organic snack items, and confections under the Woodstock Farms Manufacturing name; organic, non-GMO project verified, and specialty food and non-food items under the Blue Marble brand name; pet food under the WILD HARVEST brand name; and various products under the ESSENTIAL EVERYDAY, SHOPPERS VALUE, Field Day, EQUALINE, CULINARY CIRCLE, and STONE RIDGE CREAMERY brand names. In addition, the company provides home, health and beauty care, and pharmacy products, as well as private label products through a network of Cub Foods and Shoppers retail grocery stores; and retail store support, pricing strategy, shelf and planogram management, advertising, couponing, ecommerce, consumer convenience, store design, equipment sourcing, electronic payments processing, network and data hosting, point-of-sale hardware and software, automation tools, sustainability, and administrative back-office solution services. Further, it offers consumer and trade marketing programs, and programs to support suppliers in understanding its markets. The company serves chains, independent retailers, and supernatural chains, as well as foodservice, ecommerce, conventional military business, and other sales customers. United Natural Foods, Inc. was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Providence, Rhode Island.

About Bunzl

Bunzl plc operates as a distribution and services company in the North America, Continental Europe, the United Kingdom, Ireland, and internationally. The company offers food packaging, films, labels, cleaning and hygiene supplies, and personal protection equipment to grocery stores, supermarkets, and convenience stores. It also provides food packaging, disposable tableware, guest amenities, catering equipment, agricultural supplies, cleaning and hygiene products, and safety items to hotels, restaurants, contract caterers, food processors, commercial growers, and the leisure sector; and gloves, boots, hard hats, ear and eye protection, and other workwear, as well as cleaning and hygiene supplies, and asset protection products to industrial and construction, and ecommerce sectors. In addition, the company offers chemicals and hygiene paper to cleaning and facilities management companies, and industrial and public sector customers; gloves, masks, swabs, gowns, bandages, and other healthcare related equipment; and healthcare devices to hospitals, care homes, and other facilities serving the healthcare sector. Further, it provides packaging and other store supplies to retail chains, boutiques, department stores, home improvement chains, office supply companies, and related e-commerce sales channels. Bunzl plc was founded in 1854 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.