Tripadvisor (NASDAQ:TRIP – Get Free Report) and System1 (NYSE:SST – Get Free Report) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, risk and earnings.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares Tripadvisor and System1″s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Tripadvisor | $1.82 billion | 1.23 | $10.00 million | $0.15 | 106.93 |
| System1 | $363.44 million | 0.24 | -$227.22 million | ($2.27) | -0.43 |
Tripadvisor has higher revenue and earnings than System1. System1 is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Tripadvisor, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Tripadvisor | 1.32% | 11.81% | 3.73% |
| System1 | -53.92% | -53.12% | -14.48% |
Risk and Volatility
Tripadvisor has a beta of 1.39, indicating that its stock price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, System1 has a beta of 1.34, indicating that its stock price is 34% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Institutional and Insider Ownership
99.0% of Tripadvisor shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.5% of System1 shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.2% of Tripadvisor shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 14.1% of System1 shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent recommendations for Tripadvisor and System1, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Tripadvisor | 3 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 2.06 |
| System1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
Tripadvisor currently has a consensus target price of $18.33, suggesting a potential upside of 14.30%. System1 has a consensus target price of $2.00, suggesting a potential upside of 104.08%. Given System1’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe System1 is more favorable than Tripadvisor.
Summary
Tripadvisor beats System1 on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Tripadvisor
TripAdvisor, Inc. operates as an online travel company, primarily engages in the provision of travel guidance products and services worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Brand Tripadvisor, Viator, and TheFork. The Brand Tripadvisor segment offers travel guidance platforms for travelers to discover, generate, and share authentic user-generated content in the form of ratings and reviews for destinations, points-of-interest, experiences, accommodations, restaurants, and cruises. The Viator's segment provides pure-play experiences online travel agency that comprehensive and connecting travelers to discover and book tours, activities, and attractions from experience operators. TheFork segment provides an online marketplace that enables diners to discover and book online reservations at restaurants. TripAdvisor, Inc. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Needham, Massachusetts. Tripadvisor, Inc. is a subsidiary of Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc.
About System1
System1, Inc. provides omnichannel customer acquisition platform services through its proprietary responsive acquisition marketing platform in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, the Netherlands, and internationally. It operates through two segments: Owned and Operated Advertising, and Partner Network. The company engages in the provision of acquiring traffic to its owned and operated websites, as well as revenue-sharing arrangements and related services. It also operates MapQuest, a web-based navigation service that delivers turn-by-turn direction services to users; Info.com, a metasearch engine that consumers can use to search for relevant information; HowStuffWorks, a commercial website focused on helping people solve problems in their daily lives by using various types of digital media to easily breakdown and explain complex concepts, topics, terminology and mechanisms; Startpage, a private search engine that allows users to browse and search the Internet in complete privacy; and CouponFollow for coupon destinations for online shoppers, as well as ActiveBeat and Infospace. In addition, the company provides antivirus software solutions, which offers customers a single packaged solution that provides protection and reporting to the end users. The company is based in Los Angeles, California.
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