Financial Comparison: United Parks & Resorts (NYSE:PRKS) versus Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA)

United Parks & Resorts (NYSE:PRKS) and Papa John’s International (NASDAQ:PZZA) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares United Parks & Resorts and Papa John’s International”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Parks & Resorts	$1.65 billion	1.23	$168.35 million	$2.54	17.57
Papa John’s International	$2.05 billion	0.38	$30.53 million	$0.79	30.25

United Parks & Resorts has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Papa John’s International. United Parks & Resorts is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Papa John’s International, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

United Parks & Resorts has a beta of 1.16, meaning that its stock price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Papa John’s International has a beta of 1.13, meaning that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares United Parks & Resorts and Papa John’s International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Parks & Resorts	8.11%	-27.85%	5.04%
Papa John’s International	1.34%	-10.98%	5.68%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for United Parks & Resorts and Papa John’s International, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Parks & Resorts	1	9	4	0	2.21
Papa John’s International	3	6	0	0	1.67

United Parks & Resorts currently has a consensus target price of $47.30, indicating a potential upside of 5.98%. Papa John’s International has a consensus target price of $32.00, indicating a potential upside of 33.92%. Given Papa John’s International’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Papa John’s International is more favorable than United Parks & Resorts.

Summary

United Parks & Resorts beats Papa John’s International on 7 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Parks & Resorts

United Parks & Resorts, Inc. is a holding company, which engages in the ownership and operation of theme parks. Its portfolio includes SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Aquatica, Discovery Cove, Sesame Place, and Sea Rescue. The company was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Orlando, FL.

About Papa John’s International

Papa John’s International, Inc. engages in the operation and franchise of pizza delivery and carryout restaurants. It operates through the following segments: Domestic Company-owned Restaurants, North America Franchising, North America Commissaries, International Operations, and All Others. The Domestic Company-Owned Restaurants segment consists of retail sales of pizza and side items, breadsticks, cheese sticks, chicken poppers and wings, dessert items, and canned and bottled beverages. The North America Franchising segment involves the offering of sales and support activities, development rights, and collection of royalties from franchisees located in the United States and Canada. The North America Commissaries segment includes the eleven full-service regional dough production and distribution and quality control centers. The International Operations segment represents all restaurant operations outside of the United States and Canada. The All Others segment focuses on franchise contributions to marketing funds and sale, company-owned and franchised restaurants, information systems and related services used in restaurant operations, point-of-sale system, online and other technology-based ordering platforms, printing, and promotional items. The company was founded by John H. Schnatter in 1984 and is headquartered in Louisville, KY.