Head to Head Comparison: SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC) vs. Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME)

Elme Communities (NYSE:ELME) and SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

87.9% of Elme Communities shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 70.6% of SEI Investments shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of Elme Communities shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 4.8% of SEI Investments shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Elme Communities and SEI Investments, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Elme Communities	1	2	0	0	1.67
SEI Investments	0	1	8	0	2.89

Elme Communities currently has a consensus price target of $18.00, indicating a potential upside of 925.64%. SEI Investments has a consensus price target of $123.67, indicating a potential upside of 18.12%. Given Elme Communities’ higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Elme Communities is more favorable than SEI Investments.

Volatility & Risk

Elme Communities has a beta of 0.73, indicating that its stock price is 27% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SEI Investments has a beta of 0.97, indicating that its stock price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Elme Communities and SEI Investments’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Elme Communities	N/A	N/A	N/A
SEI Investments	28.85%	29.16%	22.68%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Elme Communities and SEI Investments”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Elme Communities	$206.36 million	0.76	-$154.16 million	($1.52)	-1.15
SEI Investments	$2.45 billion	5.13	$715.30 million	$5.67	18.47

SEI Investments has higher revenue and earnings than Elme Communities. Elme Communities is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SEI Investments, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

SEI Investments beats Elme Communities on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Elme Communities

Elme Communities is committed to elevating what home can be for middle-income renters by providing a higher level of quality, service, and experience. The Company is a multifamily real estate investment trust that owns and operates approximately 9,400 apartment homes in the Washington, DC metro and the Atlanta metro regions, and owns approximately 300,000 square feet of commercial space. Focused on providing quality, affordable homes to a deep, solid, and underserved base of mid-market demand, Elme Communities is building long-term value for shareholders.

About SEI Investments

SEI Investments Company is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides wealth management, retirement and investment solutions, asset management, asset administration, investment processing outsourcing solutions, financial services, and investment advisory services to its clients. It provides its services to private banks, independent financial advisers, institutional investors, investment managers, investment advisors, wealth management organizations, corporations, retirement scheme sponsors, not-for-profit organizations, hedge fund managers, registered investment advisers, independent broker-dealers, financial planners, life insurance agents, defined-benefit schemes, defined-contribution schemes, endowments, foundations, and board-designated fund, through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm manages separate client-focused portfolios. It also launches and manages equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds, through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm invests in public equity and fixed income markets. It employs fundamental and quantitative analysis with a focus on top-down and bottom-up analysis to make its investments, through its subsidiaries. SEI Investments Company was founded in 1968 and is based in Oaks, Pennsylvania.