Head-To-Head Survey: Medley Management (MDLY) and Manning & Napier (MN)

Medley Management (NASDAQ: MDLY) and Manning & Napier (NYSE:MN) are both small-cap financials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Medley Management and Manning & Napier’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	EBITDA	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Medley Management	$67.57 million	0.46	$27.69 million	N/A	N/A
Manning & Napier	$229.41 million	0.22	$80.46 million	$0.53	6.42

Manning & Napier has higher revenue and earnings than Medley Management.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

70.6% of Manning & Napier shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.5% of Manning & Napier shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Medley Management and Manning & Napier, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Medley Management	0	5	0	0	2.00
Manning & Napier	0	3	0	0	2.00

Medley Management currently has a consensus price target of $9.20, suggesting a potential upside of 55.93%. Manning & Napier has a consensus price target of $6.00, suggesting a potential upside of 76.47%. Given Manning & Napier’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Manning & Napier is more favorable than Medley Management.

Profitability

This table compares Medley Management and Manning & Napier’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Medley Management	33.42%	N/A	15.58%
Manning & Napier	3.41%	34.28%	20.97%

Dividends

Manning & Napier pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 9.4%. Medley Management does not pay a dividend. Manning & Napier pays out 60.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Manning & Napier beats Medley Management on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

Medley Management Company Profile

Medley Management Inc. is an asset management firm offering yield solutions to retail and institutional investors. The Company operates in the investment management segment. It is focused on credit-related investment strategies, primarily originating senior secured loans to private middle market companies in the United States. The Company generally holds these loans to maturity. Its national direct origination franchise provides capital to the middle market in the United States. The Company has over $4.8 billion of assets under management (AUM) in approximately two business development companies (BDCs), Medley Capital Corporation (MCC) and Sierra Income Corporation (SIC), as well as private investment vehicles. It has over $5 billion of AUM. The Company provides capital to over 300 companies across approximately 35 industries in North America. The Company’s long-dated private funds include MOF I, MOF II and MOF III. Its private funds are managed through partnership structures

Manning & Napier Company Profile

Manning & Napier, Inc. is an independent investment management company. The Company operates through investment management industry segment. It provides a range of investment solutions through separately managed accounts, mutual funds and collective investment trust funds, as well as a range of consultative services. It offers equity, fixed income and alternative strategies, as well as a range of blended asset portfolios, such as life cycle funds. It serves a client base of high net worth individuals and institutions, including 401(k) plans, pension plans, Taft-Hartley plans (Taft-Hartley), endowments and foundations. It offers its investment management capabilities through direct sales to high net worth individuals and institutions, as well as through third-party intermediaries, platforms and institutional investment consultants. Its investment management offerings include approximately 40 separate account composites, and over 60 mutual funds and collective investment trusts.