Comparing Symbotic (NASDAQ:SYM) & Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO)

Lincoln Electric (NASDAQ:LECO) and Symbotic (NASDAQ:SYM) are both large-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, risk and valuation.

Risk and Volatility

Lincoln Electric has a beta of 1.21, suggesting that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Symbotic has a beta of 1.97, suggesting that its stock price is 97% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Lincoln Electric and Symbotic’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lincoln Electric	12.35%	39.23%	15.25%
Symbotic	0.48%	1.40%	0.41%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Lincoln Electric and Symbotic”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lincoln Electric	$4.23 billion	3.33	$520.53 million	$10.01	25.84
Symbotic	$2.25 billion	10.20	-$16.94 million	$0.09	421.11

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

Institutional & Insider Ownership

79.6% of Lincoln Electric shares are held by institutional investors. 1.7% of Lincoln Electric shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 8.2% of Symbotic shares are held by 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Lincoln Electric and Symbotic, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lincoln Electric	0	4	5	1	2.70
Symbotic	2	5	7	0	2.36

Lincoln Electric currently has a consensus target price of $306.78, indicating a potential upside of 18.61%. Symbotic has a consensus target price of $65.83, indicating a potential upside of 73.70%. Given Symbotic’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Symbotic is more favorable than Lincoln Electric.

Summary

Lincoln Electric beats Symbotic on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lincoln Electric

Lincoln Electric Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells welding, cutting, and brazing products worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Americas Welding, International Welding, and The Harris Products Group. It offers brazing and soldering filler metals, arc welding equipment, plasma and oxyfuel cutting systems, wire feeding systems, fume control equipment, welding accessories, and specialty gas regulators, and education solutions, as well as a portfolio of automated solutions for joining, cutting, material handling, module assembly, and end of line testing, as well as involved in brazing and soldering alloys, and in the retail business in the United States. In addition, the company manufactures copper and aluminum headers, distributor assemblies, and manifolds for the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning sector in the United States and Mexico; provides specialty welding consumables, wear plates and maintenance and repair services for alloy and wear-resistant products used in mining, steel, agricultural, and industrial mill applications; and designs and manufactures robotic assembly and arc welding systems that automate the tacking and welding of steel beams. Further, the company serves general fabrication, oil and gas, power generation, process, automotive and transportation, and construction and infrastructure industries, as well as heavy fabrication, ship building, and maintenance and repair markets. It sells its products directly to users of welding products, as well as through industrial distributors, retailers, and agents. The company was founded in 1895 and is headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio.

About Symbotic

Symbotic Inc., an automation technology company, engages in developing technologies to improve operating efficiencies in modern warehouses. The company automates the processing of pallets and cases in large warehouses or distribution centers for retail companies. Its systems enhance operations at the front end of the supply chain. The company was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Wilmington, Massachusetts.