Analyzing CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP) and Great Portland Estates (OTCMKTS:GPEAF)

Great Portland Estates (OTCMKTS:GPEAF) and CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP) are both real estate companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Great Portland Estates and CoStar Group”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Great Portland Estates	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
CoStar Group	$3.25 billion	3.70	$7.00 million	$0.19	156.11

CoStar Group has higher revenue and earnings than Great Portland Estates.

Risk & Volatility

Great Portland Estates has a beta of 0.53, indicating that its stock price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CoStar Group has a beta of 0.72, indicating that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

96.6% of CoStar Group shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of CoStar Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Great Portland Estates and CoStar Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Great Portland Estates	N/A	N/A	N/A
CoStar Group	2.08%	3.74%	2.96%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Great Portland Estates and CoStar Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Great Portland Estates	0	2	1	0	2.33
CoStar Group	2	9	9	0	2.35

CoStar Group has a consensus price target of $41.61, indicating a potential upside of 40.29%. Given CoStar Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe CoStar Group is more favorable than Great Portland Estates.

Summary

CoStar Group beats Great Portland Estates on 10 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Great Portland Estates

We are a FTSE 250 property investment and development company owning £2.5 billion of real estate in central London. We proactively manage our portfolio, flexing our activities in tune with London’s property cycle to deliver long-term out-performance. We create in-demand spaces that people want to be part of; helping our occupiers, local communities and the city to thrive.

About CoStar Group

CoStar Group, Inc. provides information, analytics, and online marketplace services to the commercial real estate, hospitality, residential, and related professionals industries in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company offers CoStar Property that provides inventory of office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality, and student housing properties and land; CoStar Sales, a robust database of comparable commercial real estate sales transactions; CoStar Market Analytics to view and report on aggregated market and submarket trends; and CoStar Tenant, an online business-to-business prospecting and analytical tool that provides tenant information. It also provides Leasing, a tool to capture, manage, and maintain lease data; CoStar Lease Analysis; Public Record, a searchable database of commercially zoned parcels; CoStar Real Estate Manager, a real estate lease administration, portfolio management, and lease accounting compliance software solution; and CoStar Risk Analytics and CoStar Investment. In addition, it offers apartment marketing sites, such as ApartmentFinder.com, ForRent.com, ApartmentHomeLiving.com, WestsideRentals.com, AFTER55.com, CorporateHousing.com, ForRentUniversity.com, Apartamentos.com, and Off Campus Partners; LoopNet Premium Lister; LoopNet Diamond, Platinum, and Gold Ads; LandsofAmerica.com, LandAndFarm.com, and LandWatch.com for rural land for-sale; BizBuySell.com, BizQuest.com, and FindaFranchise.com for operating businesses and franchises for-sale; Ten-X, an online auction platform for commercial real estate; and HomeSnap, an online and mobile software platform, as well as Homes.com, a homes for sale listings site. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.