Head-To-Head Comparison: Marcus (NYSE:MCS) vs. Six Flags Entertainment (NYSE:FUN)

Marcus (NYSE:MCS) and Six Flags Entertainment (NYSE:FUN) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and earnings.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

81.6% of Marcus shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 64.7% of Six Flags Entertainment shares are held by institutional investors. 5.0% of Marcus shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.8% of Six Flags Entertainment shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Marcus pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Six Flags Entertainment pays an annual dividend of $0.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Marcus pays out 133.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Six Flags Entertainment pays out -1.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Marcus has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Marcus is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares Marcus and Six Flags Entertainment’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Marcus	1.91%	4.28%	1.88%
Six Flags Entertainment	-14.92%	-1.00%	-0.22%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Marcus and Six Flags Entertainment”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Marcus	$753.27 million	0.63	-$7.79 million	$0.24	64.68
Six Flags Entertainment	$3.14 billion	0.47	-$231.16 million	($17.72)	-0.82

Marcus has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Six Flags Entertainment. Six Flags Entertainment is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Marcus, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Marcus and Six Flags Entertainment, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Marcus	0	2	3	1	2.83
Six Flags Entertainment	2	5	8	0	2.40

Marcus presently has a consensus target price of $23.75, suggesting a potential upside of 52.99%. Six Flags Entertainment has a consensus target price of $29.07, suggesting a potential upside of 99.16%. Given Six Flags Entertainment’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Six Flags Entertainment is more favorable than Marcus.

Volatility & Risk

Marcus has a beta of 1, meaning that its share price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, Six Flags Entertainment has a beta of 0.69, meaning that its share price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Marcus beats Six Flags Entertainment on 14 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Marcus

The Marcus Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, owns and operates movie theatres, and hotels and resorts in the United States. It operates a family entertainment center and multiscreen motion picture theatres under the Big Screen Bistro, Big Screen Bistro Express, BistroPlex, and Movie Tavern by Marcus brand names. The company also owns and operates full-service hotels and resorts, as well as manages full-service hotels, resorts, and other properties. In addition, it provides hospitality management services, including check-in, housekeeping, and maintenance for a vacation ownership development; and manages condominium hotels under long-term management contracts. The Marcus Corporation was founded in 1935 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

About Six Flags Entertainment

Cedar Fair, L.P. owns and operates amusement and water parks, as well as complementary resort facilities. Its amusement parks include Cedar Point located on Lake Erie between Cleveland and Toledo in Sandusky, Ohio; Knott's Berry Farm near Los Angeles, California; Canada's Wonderland near Toronto, Ontario; Kings Island near Cincinnati, Ohio; Carowinds in Charlotte, North Carolina; Kings Dominion situated near Richmond, Virginia; California's Great America located in Santa Clara, California; Dorney Park in Pennsylvania; Worlds of Fun located in Kansas City, Missouri; Valleyfair situated near Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota; Michigan's Adventure situated near Muskegon, Michigan; Schlitterbahn Waterpark & Resort New Braunfels in New Braunfels, Texas; and Schlitterbahn Waterpark Galveston in Galveston, Texas. The company also owns and operates the Castaway Bay Indoor Waterpark Resort, Hotel Breakers, Cedar Point's Express Hotel, and Sawmill Creek Resort. Cedar Fair, L.P. was founded in 1983 and is based in Sandusky, Ohio.