EverQuote (NASDAQ:EVER – Get Free Report) and Principal Financial Group (NASDAQ:PFG – Get Free Report) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, valuation and earnings.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares EverQuote and Principal Financial Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| EverQuote | $644.66 million | 0.82 | $32.17 million | $1.43 | 10.25 |
| Principal Financial Group | $15.63 billion | 1.29 | $1.57 billion | $5.27 | 17.15 |
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for EverQuote and Principal Financial Group, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| EverQuote | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3.00 |
| Principal Financial Group | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
EverQuote presently has a consensus target price of $34.00, suggesting a potential upside of 131.92%. Given EverQuote’s higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe EverQuote is more favorable than Principal Financial Group.
Risk & Volatility
EverQuote has a beta of 0.5, suggesting that its share price is 50% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Principal Financial Group has a beta of 0.89, suggesting that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Profitability
This table compares EverQuote and Principal Financial Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| EverQuote | 8.36% | 38.19% | 25.60% |
| Principal Financial Group | 7.58% | 16.09% | 0.57% |
Insider & Institutional Ownership
91.5% of EverQuote shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 75.1% of Principal Financial Group shares are held by institutional investors. 25.5% of EverQuote shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Principal Financial Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Dividends
EverQuote pays an annual dividend of $0.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.6%. Principal Financial Group pays an annual dividend of $3.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. EverQuote pays out 16.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Principal Financial Group pays out 60.0% 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. Principal Financial Group has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Principal Financial Group is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Summary
EverQuote beats Principal Financial Group on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.
About EverQuote
EverQuote, Inc. operates an online marketplace for insurance shopping in the United States. The company offers auto, home and renters, and life insurance. The company serves carriers and agents, as well as indirect distributors. The company was formerly known as AdHarmonics, Inc., and changed its name to EverQuote, Inc. in November 2014. EverQuote, Inc. was incorporated in 2008 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
About Principal Financial Group
Principal Financial Group, Inc. provides retirement, asset management, and insurance products and services to businesses, individuals, and institutional clients worldwide. The company operates through Retirement and Income Solutions, Principal Global Investors, Principal International, and U.S. Insurance Solutions segments. The Retirement and Income Solutions segment provides a portfolio of asset accumulation products and services for retirement savings and income. It offers products and services for defined contribution plans, including 401(k) and 403(b) plans, defined benefit pension plans, nonqualified executive benefit plans, employee stock ownership plans, equity compensation, and pension risk transfer services; individual retirement accounts; investment only products; and mutual funds, individual variable annuities, and bank products. The Principal Global Investors segment provides equity, fixed income, real estate, and other alternative investments, as well as asset allocation, stable value management, and other structured investment strategies. The Principal International segment offers pension accumulation products and services, mutual funds, asset management, income annuities, and life insurance accumulation products, as well as voluntary savings plans in Brazil, Chile, Mexico, China, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, India, and Southeast Asia. The U.S. Insurance Solutions segment provides specialty benefits, such as group dental and vision insurance, group life insurance, and group and individual disability insurance, as well as administers group dental, disability, and vision benefits; and individual life insurance products comprising universal, variable universal, indexed universal, and term life insurance products in the United States. It also offers insurance solutions for small and medium-sized businesses and their owners, as well as executives. Principal Financial Group, Inc. was founded in 1879 and is based in Des Moines, Iowa.
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