Zumiez (NASDAQ:ZUMZ – Get Free Report) and American Eagle Outfitters (NYSE:AEO – Get Free Report) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, risk and earnings.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Zumiez and American Eagle Outfitters”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Zumiez | $929.06 million | 0.22 | $13.38 million | $0.72 | 18.58 |
| American Eagle Outfitters | $5.50 billion | 0.45 | $191.98 million | $1.96 | 7.53 |
Profitability
This table compares Zumiez and American Eagle Outfitters’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Zumiez | 1.36% | 3.71% | 1.78% |
| American Eagle Outfitters | 5.91% | 23.63% | 9.59% |
Institutional and Insider Ownership
95.5% of Zumiez shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.3% of American Eagle Outfitters shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.3% of Zumiez shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.9% of American Eagle Outfitters shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Risk and Volatility
Zumiez has a beta of 1, indicating that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, American Eagle Outfitters has a beta of 1.33, indicating that its stock price is 33% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent recommendations for Zumiez and American Eagle Outfitters, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Zumiez | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| American Eagle Outfitters | 1 | 11 | 2 | 1 | 2.20 |
American Eagle Outfitters has a consensus target price of $19.36, suggesting a potential upside of 31.18%. Given American Eagle Outfitters’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe American Eagle Outfitters is more favorable than Zumiez.
Summary
American Eagle Outfitters beats Zumiez on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Zumiez
Zumiez Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of apparel, footwear, accessories, and hardgoods for young men and women. The company provides hardgoods, including skateboards, snowboards, bindings, components, and other equipment. It operates stores in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia under the names of Zumiez, Blue Tomato, and Fast Times. It operates zumiez.com, zumiez.ca, blue-tomato.com, and fasttimes.com.au e-commerce websites. Zumiez Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Lynnwood, Washington.
About American Eagle Outfitters
American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. operates as a multi-brand specialty retailer in the United States and internationally. The company provides jeans, apparel and accessories, and personal care products for women and men under the American Eagle brand; and intimates, apparel, activewear, and swim collections under the Aerie and OFFLINE by Aerie brands. It also offers menswear products under the Todd Snyder New York brand; and fashion clothing and accessories under the Unsubscribed brand. The company sells its products through own and licensed retail stores; concession-based shops-within-shops; and digital channels, such as www.ae.com, www.aerie.com, www.toddsnyder.com, and www.unsubscribed.com. American Eagle Outfitters, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
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