Bright Horizons Family Solutions (NYSE:BFAM – Get Free Report) and Laureate Education (NASDAQ:LAUR – Get Free Report) are both mid-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.
Volatility and Risk
Bright Horizons Family Solutions has a beta of 1.13, indicating that its share price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Laureate Education has a beta of 0.45, indicating that its share price is 55% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Profitability
This table compares Bright Horizons Family Solutions and Laureate Education’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Bright Horizons Family Solutions | -4.38% | 23.72% | 6.45% |
| Laureate Education | 20.28% | 26.41% | 12.76% |
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Bright Horizons Family Solutions and Laureate Education, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Bright Horizons Family Solutions | 2 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 2.20 |
| Laureate Education | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2.57 |
Bright Horizons Family Solutions presently has a consensus price target of $79.50, suggesting a potential upside of 50.49%. Laureate Education has a consensus price target of $40.90, suggesting a potential upside of 17.06%. Given Bright Horizons Family Solutions’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Bright Horizons Family Solutions is more favorable than Laureate Education.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Bright Horizons Family Solutions and Laureate Education”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Bright Horizons Family Solutions | $2.93 billion | 0.86 | $193.12 million | ($2.97) | -17.79 |
| Laureate Education | $1.70 billion | 2.79 | $281.63 million | $2.73 | 12.80 |
Laureate Education has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Bright Horizons Family Solutions. Bright Horizons Family Solutions is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Laureate Education, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
96.3% of Laureate Education shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of Bright Horizons Family Solutions shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Laureate Education shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Summary
Laureate Education beats Bright Horizons Family Solutions on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Bright Horizons Family Solutions
Bright Horizons Family Solutions provides early education and child care, back-up care, and other services that help employers support employees’ family and education needs. Its offerings include center-based child care and preschool, care for children and adults when regular arrangements are unavailable, and education-related programs for employers. Founded in 1986, the company works with employers and families through a network of early education and care centers and employer-sponsored programs.
About Laureate Education
Laureate Education, Inc. operates a network of private higher education institutions in Mexico and Peru. Its principal institutions are Universidad del Valle de México (UVM) and Universidad Peruana de Ciencias Aplicadas (UPC). The company offers undergraduate and graduate degree programs, as well as other academic and professional education, across fields that include business, health sciences, engineering and technology. Its institutions serve students through campus-based and digital learning options.
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