Comparing Knife River (NYSE:KNF) and Forterra (OTCMKTS:FTTRF)

Knife River (NYSE:KNF) and Forterra (OTCMKTS:FTTRF) are both materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Knife River and Forterra, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Knife River	2	2	5	1	2.50
Forterra	0	0	2	0	3.00

Knife River currently has a consensus target price of $85.86, indicating a potential upside of 38.55%. Given Knife River’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Knife River is more favorable than Forterra.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

80.1% of Knife River shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of Knife River shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Knife River and Forterra’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Knife River	4.23%	8.73%	3.65%
Forterra	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Knife River and Forterra”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Knife River	$3.15 billion	1.12	$157.07 million	$2.45	25.29
Forterra	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Knife River has higher revenue and earnings than Forterra.

Summary

Knife River beats Forterra on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Knife River

Knife River Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides aggregates- led construction materials and contracting services in the United States. It operates through Pacific, Northwest, Mountain, Central, and Energy Services segments. The company mines, processes, and sells construction aggregates, including crushed stone and sand, and gravel; and produces and sells asphalt and ready-mix concrete. It also provides contracting service, such as heavy-civil construction, asphalt and concrete paving, and site development and grading. In addition, the company sells cement, merchandise, and other building materials and related services. The company sells its construction materials to public and private-sector customers, including federal, state, and municipal governments, as well as industrial, commercial and residential developers, and other private parties; and provides its contracting services to public-sector customers for the development and servicing of highways, local roads, bridges, and other public-infrastructure projects. Knife River Corporation was founded in 1917 and is based in Bismarck, North Dakota.

About Forterra

Forterra plc engages in the manufacture and sale of building products in the United Kingdom. The company operates through three segments: Bricks, Blocks, and Bespoke Products. It offers bricks; aircrete and aggregate blocks for internal and external applications, such as foundations, floors and walls, and detailing; bespoke precast concrete products comprising jetfloor, hollowcore, beam and block, and flooring, as well as box culverts, omnia bridge decks, and retaining walls for infrastructure; and crosswall frames, stairs and landings, stadia components, and columns and beams for structural projects. The company also provides walling and cladding systems, including brick slip cladding systems, prefabricated walling systems, and retained brick slip systems; clayware chimneys, roofing solutions, and fuel components and systems; special shaped bricks; and conventional and permeable paving products and accessories, as well as urban drainage systems. It offers its products under the London Brick, Butterley Brick, Ecostock, Thermalite, Cradley Special Bricks, Conbloc, Bison Precast, Wonderwall, Quickwall, Surebrick, Red Bank, and Formpave brand names. The company was incorporated in 2016 and is headquartered in Northampton, the United Kingdom.