Contrasting QBE Insurance Group (OTCMKTS:QBIEY) and Root (NASDAQ:ROOT)

QBE Insurance Group (OTCMKTS:QBIEY) and Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) are both financial services companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares QBE Insurance Group and Root’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
QBE Insurance Group	N/A	N/A	N/A
Root	-32.40%	-73.62%	-11.83%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.0% of QBE Insurance Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 59.8% of Root shares are held by institutional investors. 10.3% of Root shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for QBE Insurance Group and Root, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
QBE Insurance Group	0	0	0	0	N/A
Root	0	5	4	0	2.44

Root has a consensus price target of $21.88, suggesting a potential downside of 66.03%. Given Root’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Root is more favorable than QBE Insurance Group.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares QBE Insurance Group and Root’s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
QBE Insurance Group	N/A	N/A	N/A	($0.31)	-37.42
Root	$455.00 million	2.07	-$147.40 million	($10.23)	-6.30

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

Summary

Root beats QBE Insurance Group on 6 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About QBE Insurance Group

QBE Insurance Group Limited engages in underwriting general insurance and reinsurance risks in the Australia Pacific, North America, and internationally. It offers range of commercial, personal, and specialty products, such as commercial and domestic property, agriculture, public/product liability, motor and motor casualty, professional indemnity, workers' compensation, accident, health, financial and credit, and other insurance products, as well as marine, energy and aviation insurance products, and risk management solutions. The company also manages Lloyd's syndicates, as well as provides investment management services. QBE Insurance Group Limited was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Sydney, Australia.

About Root

Root, Inc. provides insurance products and services in the United States. The company offers automobile, homeowners, and renters insurance products. It operates a direct-to-consumer model; and serves customers primarily through mobile applications, as well as through its website. The company's direct distribution channels also cover digital, media, and referral channels, as well as distribution partners and agencies. Root, Inc. was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.