J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) & Xcel Brands (NASDAQ:XELB) Critical Comparison

J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) and Xcel Brands (NASDAQ:XELB) are both small-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, valuation, earnings and institutional ownership.

Volatility and Risk

J.Jill has a beta of 0.9, suggesting that its share price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Xcel Brands has a beta of 0.91, suggesting that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares J.Jill and Xcel Brands’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
J.Jill	6.12%	40.48%	10.50%
Xcel Brands	-399.74%	-19.43%	-10.45%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for J.Jill and Xcel Brands, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
J.Jill	2	3	2	0	2.00
Xcel Brands	1	1	1	0	2.00

J.Jill currently has a consensus price target of $20.00, indicating a potential upside of 31.67%. Xcel Brands has a consensus price target of $3.00, indicating a potential upside of 59.57%. Given Xcel Brands’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Xcel Brands is more favorable than J.Jill.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

40.7% of J.Jill shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 18.5% of Xcel Brands shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.4% of J.Jill shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 40.3% of Xcel Brands shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares J.Jill and Xcel Brands”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
J.Jill	$601.71 million	0.38	$39.48 million	$2.39	6.36
Xcel Brands	$5.77 million	1.55	-$22.40 million	($9.74)	-0.19

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

Summary

J.Jill beats Xcel Brands on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About J.Jill

J.Jill, Inc. operates as an omnichannel retailer for women's apparel under the J.Jill brand in the United States. It offers apparel, footwear, and accessories, including scarves and jewelry. The company markets its products through retail stores, website, and catalogs. J.Jill, Inc. was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts.

About Xcel Brands

Xcel Brands, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a media and consumer products company in the United States. The company designs, produces, markets, wholesales, and sells branded apparel, footwear, accessories, jewelry, home goods, and other consumer products; and acquires consumer lifestyle brands, including the Isaac Mizrahi, the LOGO by Lori Goldstein, the Judith Ripka, the Halston brand, the C Wonder, the TowerHill by Christie Brinkley brand (the CB brand), and other brands, as well as manages the Longaberger brand. It licenses its brands to third parties; and designs, produces, markets, and distributes through an omni-channel retail sales strategy, which include distribution through interactive television, digital live-stream shopping, brick-and-mortar retail, and e-commerce channels. The company also offers live streaming, social media and other marketing, and public relations support for its brands. In addition, it markets its brands through www.isaacmizrahi.com; www.halston.com; www.judithripka.com; www.cwonder.com; www.lorigoldstein.com; and www.longaberger.com. Xcel Brands, Inc. was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in New York, New York.