Airtel Africa (AAF) Competitors

Airtel Africa (LON:AAF) and Vodafone Group Public (LON:VOD) are both communication services companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, institutional ownership and profitability.

Which has more volatility and risk, AAF or VOD?

Airtel Africa has a beta of 1.04, suggesting that its share price is 4% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vodafone Group Public has a beta of 0.54, suggesting that its share price is 46% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is AAF or VOD more profitable?

Vodafone Group Public has a net margin of 1.79% compared to Airtel Africa's net margin of -1.67%. Vodafone Group Public's return on equity of 1.20% beat Airtel Africa's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Airtel Africa	-1.67%	-3.58%	9.60%
Vodafone Group Public	1.79%	1.20%	1.45%

Do institutionals and insiders believe in AAF or VOD?

22.2% of Airtel Africa shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.4% of Vodafone Group Public shares are owned by institutional investors. 72.6% of Airtel Africa shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.9% of Vodafone Group Public shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Do analysts prefer AAF or VOD?

Airtel Africa currently has a consensus target price of GBX 141.50, suggesting a potential downside of 27.95%. Vodafone Group Public has a consensus target price of GBX 73, suggesting a potential downside of 15.14%. Given Vodafone Group Public's higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Vodafone Group Public is more favorable than Airtel Africa.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Airtel Africa	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00
Vodafone Group Public	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.00

Does the media refer more to AAF or VOD?

In the previous week, Airtel Africa had 4 more articles in the media than Vodafone Group Public. MarketBeat recorded 5 mentions for Airtel Africa and 1 mentions for Vodafone Group Public. Airtel Africa's average media sentiment score of 1.11 beat Vodafone Group Public's score of 0.30 indicating that Airtel Africa is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Airtel Africa	3 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Vodafone Group Public	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Which has better earnings and valuation, AAF or VOD?

Vodafone Group Public has higher revenue and earnings than Airtel Africa. Airtel Africa is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Vodafone Group Public, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Airtel Africa	£5.83B	1.54	-£97.44M	-£1.70	-115.53
Vodafone Group Public	£44.66B	0.58	£797.39M	£2.20	39.01

Is AAF or VOD a better dividend stock?

Airtel Africa pays an annual dividend of GBX 5 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. Vodafone Group Public pays an annual dividend of GBX 8 per share and has a dividend yield of 9.3%. Airtel Africa pays out -294.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Vodafone Group Public pays out 362.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Summary

Airtel Africa and Vodafone Group Public tied by winning 9 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.