Contrasting Grindr (NYSE:GRND) & System1 (NYSE:SST)

Grindr (NYSE:GRND) and System1 (NYSE:SST) are both communication services companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends and profitability.

Volatility & Risk

Grindr has a beta of 0.23, suggesting that its share price is 77% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, System1 has a beta of 1.69, suggesting that its share price is 69% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Grindr and System1’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Grindr	10.86%	975.42%	17.33%
System1	-50.66%	-439.90%	-19.35%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Grindr and System1, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Grindr	0	1	5	0	2.83
System1	1	1	1	0	2.00

Grindr currently has a consensus target price of $20.00, indicating a potential upside of 42.21%. System1 has a consensus target price of $6.50, indicating a potential upside of 275.72%. Given System1’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe System1 is more favorable than Grindr.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Grindr and System1″s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Grindr	$439.90 million	5.56	$94.75 million	$0.30	46.88
System1	$180.94 million	0.10	-$65.35 million	($11.31)	-0.15

Grindr has higher revenue and earnings than System1. System1 is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Grindr, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

7.2% of Grindr shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.5% of System1 shares are owned by institutional investors. 60.9% of Grindr shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 10.2% of System1 shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Grindr beats System1 on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Grindr

Grindr Inc. operates Grindr, a location-based social networking and dating app for the LGBTQ community. The platform lets users create profiles, discover nearby people and communicate through messaging and other in-app features. The company generates revenue primarily through paid subscriptions, which offer additional app features, and advertising. Grindr serves users in countries and territories around the world. Founded in 2009 by Joel Simkhai, Grindr became a publicly traded company in 2022. George Arison is the company’s chief executive officer.

About System1

System1, Inc. (NYSE:SST) is a technology and digital marketing company that operates a customer acquisition platform. Its proprietary Responsive Acquisition Marketing Platform (RAMP) uses data science, machine learning and performance marketing technology to help advertisers and distribution partners acquire and monetize users across digital channels. The company operates through partner-based and owned-and-operated activities. Through its partner network, System1 provides marketing services and technology that connect consumers with products and services, including search, subscription, lead-generation and other online offerings.