Contrasting loanDepot (NYSE:LDI) & Flywire (NASDAQ:FLYW)

Flywire (NASDAQ:FLYW) and loanDepot (NYSE:LDI) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Flywire and loanDepot’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Flywire	4.77%	4.08%	2.81%
loanDepot	-5.52%	-28.25%	-1.56%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Flywire and loanDepot, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Flywire	0	7	8	0	2.53
loanDepot	2	2	0	0	1.50

Flywire currently has a consensus target price of $20.23, indicating a potential upside of 7.84%. loanDepot has a consensus target price of $1.38, indicating a potential upside of 142.08%. Given loanDepot’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe loanDepot is more favorable than Flywire.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Flywire and loanDepot”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Flywire	$623.03 million	3.66	$13.50 million	$0.26	72.15
loanDepot	$1.19 billion	0.16	-$62.65 million	($0.30)	-1.89

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

Insider & Institutional Ownership

95.9% of Flywire shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.4% of loanDepot shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.0% of Flywire shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 65.9% of loanDepot shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Flywire has a beta of 1.35, indicating that its share price is 35% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, loanDepot has a beta of 3.45, indicating that its share price is 245% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Flywire beats loanDepot on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Flywire

Flywire Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a payments enablement and software company in the United States and internationally. Its payment platform and network, and vertical-specific software help clients to get paid and help their customers to pay. The company’s platform facilitates payment flows across multiple currencies, payment types, and payment options, as well as provides direct connections to alternative payment methods, such as Alipay, Boleto, PayPal/Venmo, and Trustly. It serves education, healthcare, travel, and business to business organizations. The company was formerly known as peerTransfer Corporation and changed its name to Flywire Corporation in December 2016. Flywire Corporation was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

About loanDepot

loanDepot, Inc. engages in originating, financing, selling, and servicing residential mortgage loans in the United States. The company offers conventional agency-conforming and prime jumbo, federal assistance residential mortgage, and home equity loans. It also provides settlement services, which include captive title and escrow business; real estate services that cover captive real estate referral business; and insurance services, including services to homeowners, as well as other consumer insurance policies. The company was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.