Head-To-Head Review: CBIZ (NYSE:CBZ) versus MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX)

CBIZ (NYSE:CBZ) and MediaAlpha (NYSE:MAX) are both business services companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk and dividends.

Valuation and Earnings

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CBIZ	$1.59 billion	2.65	$120.97 million	$2.36	35.55
MediaAlpha	$681.23 million	1.12	-$40.42 million	$0.17	67.06

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

Profitability

This table compares CBIZ and MediaAlpha’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CBIZ	7.08%	15.12%	6.16%
MediaAlpha	1.41%	-11.98%	5.19%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for CBIZ and MediaAlpha, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CBIZ	0	0	1	0	3.00
MediaAlpha	0	1	6	0	2.86

CBIZ currently has a consensus price target of $86.00, indicating a potential upside of 2.51%. MediaAlpha has a consensus price target of $21.57, indicating a potential upside of 89.22%. Given MediaAlpha’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe MediaAlpha is more favorable than CBIZ.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

87.4% of CBIZ shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.4% of MediaAlpha shares are held by institutional investors. 5.4% of CBIZ shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 11.5% of MediaAlpha shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

CBIZ has a beta of 0.95, meaning that its stock price is 5% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MediaAlpha has a beta of 1.12, meaning that its stock price is 12% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

CBIZ beats MediaAlpha on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CBIZ

CBIZ, Inc. provides financial, insurance, and advisory services in the United States and Canada. It operates through Financial Services, Benefits and Insurance Services, and National Practices segments. The Financial Services segment offers accounting and tax, financial advisory, valuation, risk and advisory, and government healthcare consulting services. The Benefits and Insurance Services provides employee benefits consulting, payroll/human capital management, property and casualty insurance, and retirement and investment services. The National Practices segment offers information technology managed networking and hardware, and health care consulting services. The company primarily serves small and medium-sized businesses, as well as individuals, governmental entities, and not-for-profit enterprises. CBIZ, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Independence, Ohio.

About MediaAlpha

MediaAlpha, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates an insurance customer acquisition platform in the United States. It optimizes customer acquisition in various verticals of property and casualty insurance, health insurance, and life insurance. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, California.