Apollo Education Group (NASDAQ: APOL) and Nord Anglia Education (NYSE:NORD) are both non-cyclical consumer goods & services companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and dividends.
Volatility and Risk
Apollo Education Group has a beta of 0.85, suggesting that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Nord Anglia Education has a beta of 0.96, suggesting that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Apollo Education Group and Nord Anglia Education’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | EBITDA | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Apollo Education Group | N/A | N/A | N/A | ($0.19) | -52.61 |
| Nord Anglia Education | $907.80 million | 3.73 | $173.60 million | $0.57 | 57.11 |
Nord Anglia Education has higher revenue and earnings than Apollo Education Group. Apollo Education Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Nord Anglia Education, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Apollo Education Group and Nord Anglia Education’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Apollo Education Group | 0.66% | 1.53% | 0.65% |
| Nord Anglia Education | 6.71% | 22.11% | 3.06% |
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Apollo Education Group and Nord Anglia Education, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Apollo Education Group | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
| Nord Anglia Education | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2.13 |
Nord Anglia Education has a consensus price target of $30.50, suggesting a potential downside of 6.30%. Given Nord Anglia Education’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Nord Anglia Education is more favorable than Apollo Education Group.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
73.3% of Apollo Education Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 35.3% of Nord Anglia Education shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.8% of Apollo Education Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of Nord Anglia Education shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
Nord Anglia Education beats Apollo Education Group on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.
Apollo Education Group Company Profile
Apollo Education Group, Inc. is a United States-based education provider. The Company offers undergraduate, graduate, certificate and non-degree educational programs and services, online and on-campus, to working adults in the United States and abroad. Its segments include University of Phoenix, Apollo Global and Other. The University of Phoenix segment offers undergraduate and graduate degrees through its colleges and schools in a range of program areas, as well as various non-degree programs. Primarily, the University of Phoenix’s students attend classes online. It also offers educational programs and services at ground locations throughout the United States. The Apollo Global segment includes its institutions based outside the United States and its corporate operations. The Other segment includes College for Financial Planning Institutes Corporation; Western International University, Inc.; TIY Academy, LLC; Apollo Professional Development, and Apollo corporate activities.
Nord Anglia Education Company Profile
Nord Anglia Education, Inc. is an operator of international schools. As of August 31, 2016, the Company taught over 37,000 students, from kindergarten through the end of secondary school (K-12), at its 43 schools in China, Europe, the Middle East, South East Asia and North America. The Company’s segments include China, Europe, Middle East (ME), Southeast Asia (SEA), North America and Other. The China segment includes its activities in the People’s Republic of China and the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region. The Europe segment includes the Company’s activities in Switzerland, Slovakia, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Spain and Poland. The ME segment includes the Company’s activities in the United Arab Emirates and Qatar. The SEA segment includes the Company’s activities in Thailand, Singapore, Cambodia and Vietnam. The North America segment includes the Company’s activities in the United States and Mexico. The Other segment includes the Learning Services division.
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