Comparing Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) & Leifras (NASDAQ:LFS)

Afya (NASDAQ:AFYA) and Leifras (NASDAQ:LFS) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, institutional ownership and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Afya and Leifras, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Afya	1	5	1	0	2.00
Leifras	1	0	0	0	1.00

Afya currently has a consensus price target of $17.75, suggesting a potential upside of 46.94%. Given Afya’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Afya is more favorable than Leifras.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

88.0% of Afya shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of Afya shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Afya and Leifras’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Afya	20.55%	17.58%	9.09%
Leifras	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Afya and Leifras”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Afya	$662.01 million	1.71	$134.77 million	$1.64	7.37
Leifras	$74.80 million	0.73	$2.80 million	$0.13	16.15

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

Summary

Afya beats Leifras on 12 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Afya

Afya Limited, through its subsidiaries, operates as a medical education group in Brazil. The company operates through three segments: Undergrad, Continuing Education, and Digital Services. It offers educational products and services, including medical schools, medical residency preparatory courses, graduate courses, and other programs to lifelong medical learners enrolled across its distribution network, as well as to third-party medical schools. The company also provides digital health services, such as subscription-based mobile app and website portal that focuses on assisting health professionals and students with clinical decision-making through tools, such as medical calculators, charts, and updated content, as well as prescriptions, clinical scores, medical procedures and laboratory exams, and others. It offers health sciences courses, which comprise medicine, dentistry, nursing, radiology, psychology, pharmacy, physical education, physiotherapy, nutrition, and biomedicine; and degree programs and courses in other subjects and disciplines, including undergraduate and post graduate courses in business administration, accounting, law, civil engineering, industrial engineering, and pedagogy. In addition, the company provides medical postgraduate specialization programs; printed and digital content; and an online medical education platform and practical medical training services. The company was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Nova Lima, Brazil.

About Leifras

Headquartered in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, we are a sports and social business company dedicated to youth sports and community engagement. We primarily provide services related to the organization and operations of sports schools and sports events for children. Building upon our experience and know-how in sports education, we also operate a robust social business sector, dispatching sports coaches to meet various community needs. At the core of our operations is the children’s sports school business. When we refer to a sports school, it refers to a series of courses and programs that we offer to teach a sport, instead of a physical location. As of December 31, 2024, we were recognized as one of Japan’s largest operators of children’s sports schools in terms of both membership and facilities. As of the date of this prospectus, we hold our sports classes at more than 4,500 facility locations in Japan nationwide, serving over 62,400 members. The number of members is based on the number of students taking classes; if a student is enrolled in two different classes, this student is counted as two members. We provide 13 sports schools, from soccer school “Liberta” and basketball school “Porte,” to rhythmic karate school “Quore” and kendo school “Kokoro.” We also offer classes that cater to the various needs of different age groups and sports capability levels. For instance, our “JJMIX” classes offer beginners from the age of two and up the opportunity to experience multiple sports, and our “Rugina” classes are designed specifically for girls. Approximately 87% of our sports school members are elementary school students, with additional programs for preschoolers, nursery school children, kindergarteners, and junior high school students. These classes are taught by professional coaches who bring their expertise and passion to each session, ensuring that students receive high-quality coaching in safe environments. Our sports school business also extends to sports merchandise sales and commissioned special guidance services. Our approach to sports education emphasizes the development of non-cognitive skills, which are crucial for success both inside and outside the sports arena. Following our teaching principle “acknowledge, praise, encourage, and motivate,” our classes integrate non-cognitive skills, such as motivation, teamwork, strategic thinking, and sportsmanship, into our sports curriculum. For instance, our soccer program focuses on developing technical skills, tactical understanding, and teamwork, and our martial arts programs in karate and kendo promote physical fitness and self-discipline. Our holistic approach integrates physical and mental development, setting us apart in the industry. Building upon our experience and know-how in sports education, our social business mainly dispatches sports coaches to meet various community needs. Our school club support business provides sports coaching in school club activities and physical education classes and coordinates collaborations between school clubs and private companies. Our LEIF after-school daycare service supports children with disabilities or developmental characteristics through soccer therapy, promoting independence and improving life skills. Our involvement also extends to facility management services at public sports facilities, focusing on providing sports coaching for people of all ages. Our elderly healthcare initiative offers exercise programs for the elderly, including exercise instruction such as preventive nursing care exercises, yoga, and other health promotion services at community centers and healthcare facilities. By addressing these diverse needs, we aim to promote physical health, social inclusion, and community well-being across different demographics. Our headquarters are located in Tokyo, Japan.