HRL vs SEB vs LW Stock Comparison

Hormel Foods, Seaboard and Lamb Weston Holdings Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
HRL Hormel Foods Corp /De/
$20.88 +6.0% 1M -12.0% 1Y
Market cap
$11.49B
P/E
33.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$12.15B
Div. yield
5.57%
Packaged Foods Consumer Staples
4 wins
SEB Seaboard Corp /De/
$3,888.90 -2.0% 1M +17.1% 1Y
Market cap
$3.72B
P/E
5.9x
Revenue (TTM)
$10.27B
Div. yield
0.23%
Meat and Poultry Consumer Staples
7 wins
LW Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc.
$53.76 +23.3% 1M -19.2% 1Y
Market cap
$7.41B
P/E
29.0x
Revenue (TTM)
$6.62B
Div. yield
2.81%
Packaged Foods Consumer Staples
1 win

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Seaboard leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Seaboard 7, Hormel Foods 4, Lamb Weston Holdings 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionHRLSEBLWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $11.49B $3.72B $7.41B HRL
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 33.6x 5.9x 29.0x SEB
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 14.9x — 17.5x HRL
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +0.7% +8.2% +2.6% SEB
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 2.8% 6.2% 3.8% SEB
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 3.5% 4.9% 6.4% LW
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.8x 0.6x 4.1x SEB
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 5.57% 0.23% 2.81% HRL
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -12.0% +17.1% -19.2% SEB
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -13.4%/yr -0.2%/yr -1.3%/yr SEB
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 30.0% 37.0% 45.5% HRL
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 49/100 70/100 47/100 SEB

Percentile Scorecard

HRLSEBLW

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisHRLSEBLW
Valuation 67 #15 of 44 97 #2 of 34 54 #21 of 44
Growth 26 #30 of 40 73 #9 of 31 31 #28 of 40
Profitability 46 #21 of 38 68 #10 of 29 70 #12 of 38
Financial Health 73 #13 of 46 83 #7 of 36 36 #30 of 46
Shareholder Returns 31 #21 of 30 29 #18 of 25 45 #17 of 30
Overall 49 70 47
  • HRL ranked among 47 companies in Branded Foods
  • SEB ranked among 38 companies in Agribusiness
  • LW ranked among 47 companies in Branded Foods

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodHRLSEBLWSPY
1 month +6.0%-2.0%+23.3% -0.2%
3 months -18.3%-14.4%-1.5% +3.9%
6 months -2.0%-33.3%+24.8% +8.2%
Year to date -11.9%-12.5%+28.3% +12.9%
1 year -12.0%+17.1%-19.2% +12.3%
3 years -33.5%+10.3%-39.5% +87.4%
3 years, per year -12.7%+3.3%-15.4% +23.3%
5 years -51.3%-1.2%-6.5% +67.9%
5 years, per year -13.4%-0.2%-1.3% +10.9%
10 years -44.9%+14.6%— +261.1%
10 years, per year -5.8%+1.4%— +13.7%

Risk

MeasureHRLSEBLWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 30.0%37.0%45.5% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 29.7%42.6%54.4% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.18-0.150.22 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.400.46-0.42 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -65.0%-44.4%-66.6% -25.4%
From 52-week high -21.2%-34.7%-19.2% -1.2%
52-week high $26.51$5,958.89$66.57 $779.14
52-week low $19.20$3,218.00$38.48 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleHRLSEBLW
P/E now vs peer median 33.6xmedian 22.3x 5.9xmedian 14.8x 29.0xmedian 22.3x
P/S now vs peer median 0.9xmedian 0.7x 0.4xmedian 0.5x 1.1xmedian 0.7x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 12.5xmedian 12.3x 6.1xmedian 9.1x 12.2xmedian 12.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median 14.7xmedian 13.8x -161.9xmedian 15.0x 18.3xmedian 13.8x
P/B now vs peer median 1.5xmedian 1.5x 0.7xmedian 1.1x 4.1xmedian 1.5x
PEG now vs peer median -1.24median 0.57 0.25median 1.28 -0.82median 0.57

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsHRLSEBLW
Revenue $12.15B $10.27B $6.62B
Gross profit $1.90B $827.00M $1.28B
Operating income $573.89M $345.00M $516.80M
Net income $342.71M $639.00M $254.80M
Free cash flow $780.87M -$23.00M $403.80M
EPS (diluted) $0.62 $661.94 $1.85
Cash & equivalents $839.64M $145.00M $166.30M
Total debt $2.86B $1.60B $3.93B
Shares (diluted) 551.07M 957.79K 138.10M
Enterprise value $8.17B -$1.09B $7.03B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricHRLSEBLW
P/E 33.6x 5.9x 29.0x
P/FCF 14.7x -161.9x 18.3x
P/Operating cash flow 10.5x 7.8x 9.0x
P/S 0.9x 0.4x 1.1x
P/B 1.5x 0.7x 4.1x
P/Tangible book 1.8x 0.7x 4.4x
EV/EBITDA 12.5x 6.1x 12.2x
EV/EBIT 23.5x 11.9x 21.6x
EV/Revenue 1.1x 0.4x 1.7x
EV/FCF 17.3x -178.8x 27.7x
EV/Operating cash flow 12.3x 8.6x 13.5x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -1.24 0.25 -0.82

Growth

14 metrics
MetricHRLSEBLW
Revenue growth (1Y) 0.7% 8.2% 2.6%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -0.1% -0.6% 4.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) -3.2% 24.5% -7.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -2.5% 8.8% -8.2%
Operating income growth (1Y) -43.2% 46.2% -15.2%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -21.1% 11.0% -21.0%
Net income growth (1Y) -54.6% 346.9% -13.4%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -26.9% 16.3% -36.9%
EPS growth (1Y) -54.6% 361.7% -12.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -27.0% 23.8% -35.6%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 17.3% -14.1% -7.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -0.3% -14.5% -3.0%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 24.4% -209.5% -17.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -2.5% -27.4% 205.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricHRLSEBLW
Gross margin 15.7% 8.1% 19.4%
EBITDA margin 8.9% 6.5% 13.9%
Operating margin 4.7% 3.4% 7.8%
Pretax margin 4.3% 5.9% 5.1%
Net margin 2.8% 6.2% 3.8%
FCF margin 6.4% -0.2% 6.1%
Operating cash flow margin 9.0% 4.6% 12.5%
Return on equity 4.3% 11.8% 13.2%
Return on assets 2.6% 7.5% 3.3%
Return on invested capital 3.5% 4.9% 6.4%
Return on capital employed 5.0% 5.0% 8.7%
Asset turnover 0.9x 1.2x 0.9x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 3.2x 0.7x 3.2x
Stock comp / revenue 0.2% – 0.8%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricHRLSEBLW
Debt / assets 21.5% 18.4% 53.6%
Debt / equity 0.4x 0.3x 2.2x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.8x 0.6x 4.1x
Debt / FCF 3.7x -69.3x 9.7x
Liabilities / assets 40.9% 36.5% 75.3%
Equity / assets 59.1% 63.5% 24.7%
Interest coverage 7.3x 4.8x –
Current ratio 1.9x 2.4x 1.5x
Quick ratio 0.9x 1.2x 0.7x
Cash ratio 0.5x 0.7x 0.1x
Altman Z-score 3.26 3.28 2.60

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricHRLSEBLW
Dividend yield 5.6% 0.2% 2.8%
Net buyback yield – – 1.5%
Shareholder yield 5.6% 0.2% 4.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) 187.0% 1.4% 81.6%
Payout ratio (FCF) 82.1% -39.1% 51.5%
Dividend growth (1Y) 1.9% 0.0% 0.5%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 3.1% -3.5% 11.1%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusHRLSEBLW
Forward P/E 14.9xFY2026 – 17.5xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $1.40FY2026 – $3.07FY2026
EPS growth, next FY +2.2%FY2026 – +2.0%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +17.9% – +13.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $11.68BFY2026 – $6.42BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -3.5%FY2026 – -2.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +2.2% – -1.3%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersHRLSEBLW
Held by institutions 43.8% 26.1% 93.7%
Institutions holding 622 213 557
Change in shares held, QoQ -4.0% +2.8% +1.0%
Institutions buying 323 92 266
Institutions selling 230 73 190
Buyers to sellers 1.40 1.26 1.40

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

HRLSEBLW
HRL 1.00 0.19 0.29
SEB 0.19 1.00 0.03
LW 0.29 0.03 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, HRL, SEB and LW?

Hormel Foods (HRL) is the largest by market capitalisation: Hormel Foods (HRL) $11.49B, Seaboard (SEB) $3.72B, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) $7.41B.

Which stock is cheaper, HRL, SEB and LW?

Seaboard (SEB) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Hormel Foods (HRL) 33.6x, Seaboard (SEB) 5.9x, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) 29.0x). On next year's consensus earnings, Hormel Foods (HRL) is cheapest (Hormel Foods (HRL) 14.9x, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) 17.5x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Seaboard (SEB) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Hormel Foods (HRL) +0.7%, Seaboard (SEB) +8.2%, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) +2.6%.

Which company is more profitable?

Seaboard (SEB) has the highest net margin (Hormel Foods (HRL) 2.8%, Seaboard (SEB) 6.2%, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) 3.8%). On return on invested capital, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) leads (Hormel Foods (HRL) 3.5%, Seaboard (SEB) 4.9%, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) 6.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Seaboard (SEB) returned the most: Hormel Foods (HRL) -12.0%, Seaboard (SEB) +17.1%, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) -19.2%. Over five years, Seaboard (SEB) compounded fastest (Hormel Foods (HRL) -13.4%/yr, Seaboard (SEB) -0.2%/yr, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) -1.3%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Hormel Foods (HRL) has the highest dividend yield: Hormel Foods (HRL) 5.57%, Seaboard (SEB) 0.23%, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) 2.81%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Hormel Foods (HRL) has been the steadiest (Hormel Foods (HRL) 30.0%, Seaboard (SEB) 37.0%, Lamb Weston Holdings (LW) 45.5%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, HRL, SEB and LW?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Seaboard (SEB) leads on 7. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.