PetMed Express (NASDAQ:PETS) vs. Chewy (NYSE:CHWY) Financial Analysis

Chewy (NYSE:CHWY) and PetMed Express (NASDAQ:PETS) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Chewy and PetMed Express’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Chewy	1.99%	60.02%	8.17%
PetMed Express	-17.34%	-91.69%	-35.15%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

93.1% of Chewy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.3% of PetMed Express shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Chewy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.3% of PetMed Express shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Chewy has a beta of 1.42, meaning that its stock price is 42% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PetMed Express has a beta of 0.78, meaning that its stock price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for Chewy and PetMed Express, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Chewy	0	7	18	1	2.77
PetMed Express	1	1	0	0	1.50

Chewy currently has a consensus target price of $31.27, indicating a potential upside of 32.62%. Given Chewy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Chewy is more favorable than PetMed Express.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Chewy and PetMed Express”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Chewy	$12.60 billion	0.77	$222.80 million	$0.60	39.30
PetMed Express	$179.02 million	0.22	-$57.29 million	($1.38)	-1.31

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

Summary

Chewy beats PetMed Express on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Chewy

Chewy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the pure play e-commerce business in the United States. It provides pet food and treats, pet supplies and pet medications, and other pet-health products, as well as pet services for dogs, cats, fish, birds, small pets, horses, and reptiles through its retail websites and mobile applications. The company was founded in 2010 and is based in Plantation, Florida.

About PetMed Express

PetMed Express, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a pet pharmacy in the United States. The company markets prescription and non-prescription pet medications, health products, and other supplies for dogs, cats, and horses. It offers non-prescription medications and supplies, such as flea and tick control products, bone and joint care products, vitamins, treats, nutritional supplements, hygiene products, and household pet supplies; and prescription medications, including heartworm preventatives, flea and tick preventatives, arthritis, dermatitis, thyroid, diabetes, pain medications, heart/blood pressure, and other specialty medications, as well as generic substitutes. The company also sells food, beds, crates, stairs, and other pet supplies. It sells its products through its Internet website; mobile app; customer support center; and direct mail/print, which includes brochures and postcards. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Delray Beach, Florida.