CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP – Get Free Report) and Howard Hughes (NYSE:HHH – Get Free Report) are both real estate companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, dividends, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and risk.
Profitability
This table compares CoStar Group and Howard Hughes’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| CoStar Group | 2.08% | 3.74% | 2.96% |
| Howard Hughes | 12.31% | 7.51% | 2.41% |
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares CoStar Group and Howard Hughes”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| CoStar Group | $3.25 billion | 3.70 | $7.00 million | $0.19 | 156.16 |
| Howard Hughes | $1.47 billion | 2.98 | $123.90 million | $4.94 | 14.90 |
Howard Hughes has lower revenue, but higher earnings than CoStar Group. Howard Hughes is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CoStar Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk & Volatility
CoStar Group has a beta of 0.8, meaning that its stock price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Howard Hughes has a beta of 1.14, meaning that its stock price is 14% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Institutional and Insider Ownership
96.6% of CoStar Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.8% of Howard Hughes shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of CoStar Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 47.7% of Howard Hughes shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for CoStar Group and Howard Hughes, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| CoStar Group | 2 | 9 | 9 | 0 | 2.35 |
| Howard Hughes | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
CoStar Group currently has a consensus price target of $40.11, suggesting a potential upside of 35.17%. Howard Hughes has a consensus price target of $79.00, suggesting a potential upside of 7.34%. Given CoStar Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe CoStar Group is more favorable than Howard Hughes.
Summary
CoStar Group beats Howard Hughes on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About CoStar Group
CoStar Group, Inc. provides information, analytics, and online marketplace services to the commercial real estate, hospitality, residential, and related professionals industries in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company offers CoStar Property that provides inventory of office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality, and student housing properties and land; CoStar Sales, a robust database of comparable commercial real estate sales transactions; CoStar Market Analytics to view and report on aggregated market and submarket trends; and CoStar Tenant, an online business-to-business prospecting and analytical tool that provides tenant information. It also provides Leasing, a tool to capture, manage, and maintain lease data; CoStar Lease Analysis; Public Record, a searchable database of commercially zoned parcels; CoStar Real Estate Manager, a real estate lease administration, portfolio management, and lease accounting compliance software solution; and CoStar Risk Analytics and CoStar Investment. In addition, it offers apartment marketing sites, such as ApartmentFinder.com, ForRent.com, ApartmentHomeLiving.com, WestsideRentals.com, AFTER55.com, CorporateHousing.com, ForRentUniversity.com, Apartamentos.com, and Off Campus Partners; LoopNet Premium Lister; LoopNet Diamond, Platinum, and Gold Ads; LandsofAmerica.com, LandAndFarm.com, and LandWatch.com for rural land for-sale; BizBuySell.com, BizQuest.com, and FindaFranchise.com for operating businesses and franchises for-sale; Ten-X, an online auction platform for commercial real estate; and HomeSnap, an online and mobile software platform, as well as Homes.com, a homes for sale listings site. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.
About Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes Holdings Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate development company in the United States. It operates in four segments: Operating Assets; Master Planned Communities (MPCs); Seaport; and Strategic Developments. The Operating Assets segment consists of developed or acquired retail, office, and multi-family properties along with other retail investments. Its MPCs segment develops, sells, and leases residential and commercial land designated for long-term community development projects in and around Las Vegas, Nevada; Houston, Texas; and Phoenix, Arizona. The Seaport segment is involved in the landlord operations, managed businesses, and events and sponsorships services of its restaurant, retail, and entertain properties in Pier 17, New York City; Historic Area/Uplands; and Tin Building, as well as in 250 Water Street and in the Jean-Georges restaurants. The Strategic Development segment develops and redevelops residential condominiums and commercial properties. It serves homebuilders. Howard Hughes Holdings Inc. was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas.
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