Verisk Analytics (VRSK) Competitors

Verisk Analytics (NASDAQ:VRSK) and Equifax (NYSE:EFX) are both large-cap business services companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, profitability, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, community ranking, media sentiment and institutional ownership.

Do analysts rate VRSK or EFX?

Verisk Analytics presently has a consensus target price of $295.33, suggesting a potential upside of 0.08%. Equifax has a consensus target price of $301.13, suggesting a potential upside of 26.50%. Given Equifax's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Equifax is more favorable than Verisk Analytics.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Verisk Analytics	0 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.33
Equifax	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	14 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.89

Which has higher earnings & valuation, VRSK or EFX?

Verisk Analytics has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Equifax. Verisk Analytics is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equifax, 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
Verisk Analytics	$2.68B	15.54	$614.60M	$6.41	46.04
Equifax	$5.68B	5.19	$604.10M	$4.83	49.28

Does the media refer more to VRSK or EFX?

In the previous week, Verisk Analytics had 12 more articles in the media than Equifax. MarketBeat recorded 26 mentions for Verisk Analytics and 14 mentions for Equifax. Verisk Analytics' average media sentiment score of 1.28 beat Equifax's score of 1.13 indicating that Verisk Analytics is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Verisk Analytics	20 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Equifax	10 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do insiders & institutionals hold more shares of VRSK or EFX?

90.0% of Verisk Analytics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.2% of Equifax shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Verisk Analytics shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.6% of Equifax shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Does the MarketBeat Community believe in VRSK or EFX?

Equifax received 82 more outperform votes than Verisk Analytics when rated by MarketBeat users. However, 64.80% of users gave Verisk Analytics an outperform vote while only 63.73% of users gave Equifax an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Verisk Analytics	Outperform Votes 554 64.80%	Underperform Votes 301 35.20%
Equifax	Outperform Votes 636 63.73%	Underperform Votes 362 36.27%

Which has more volatility & risk, VRSK or EFX?

Verisk Analytics has a beta of 0.89, indicating that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equifax has a beta of 1.58, indicating that its share price is 58% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is VRSK or EFX more profitable?

Verisk Analytics has a net margin of 32.65% compared to Equifax's net margin of 10.63%. Verisk Analytics' return on equity of 274.13% beat Equifax's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Verisk Analytics	32.65%	274.13%	20.34%
Equifax	10.63%	19.13%	7.51%

Is VRSK or EFX a better dividend stock?

Verisk Analytics pays an annual dividend of $1.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. Equifax pays an annual dividend of $1.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Verisk Analytics pays out 24.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Equifax pays out 32.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Summary

Equifax beats Verisk Analytics on 11 of the 21 factors compared between the two stocks.