Analyzing Ezra (NASDAQ:EZRA) & Primerica (NYSE:PRI)

Primerica (NYSE:PRI) and Ezra (NASDAQ:EZRA) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, valuation, dividends and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Primerica and Ezra’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Primerica	23.20%	32.45%	5.35%
Ezra	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Primerica and Ezra”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Primerica	$3.43 billion	2.60	$751.23 million	$24.90	11.64
Ezra	$11.05 million	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Primerica has higher revenue and earnings than Ezra.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

90.9% of Primerica shares are held by institutional investors. 0.6% of Primerica shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Primerica and Ezra, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Primerica	0	6	3	0	2.33
Ezra	1	0	0	0	1.00

Primerica currently has a consensus target price of $315.57, suggesting a potential upside of 8.87%. Given Primerica’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Primerica is more favorable than Ezra.

Summary

Primerica beats Ezra on 9 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Primerica

Primerica, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products and services to middle-income households in the United States and Canada. The company operates in four segments: Term Life Insurance; Investment and Savings Products; Senior Health; and Corporate and Other Distributed Products. The Term Life Insurance segment underwrites individual term life insurance products. The Investment and Savings Products segment provides mutual funds and various retirement plans, managed investments, variable and fixed annuities, and fixed indexed annuities. The Senior Health segment offers segregated funds; and medicare advantage and supplement plans. The Corporate and Other Distributed Products segment provides mortgage loans; prepaid legal services that assist subscribers with legal matters, such as drafting wills, living wills and powers of attorney, trial defense, and motor vehicle-related matters; ID theft defense services; auto and homeowners' insurance; home automation solutions; and insurance products, including supplemental and accidental death, and disability insurance. It distributes and sells its products through licensed sales representatives. Primerica, Inc. was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Duluth, Georgia.