Contrasting Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) and Leatt (OTCMKTS:LEAT)

Academy Sports and Outdoors (NASDAQ:ASO) and Leatt (OTCMKTS:LEAT) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.6% of Leatt shares are held by institutional investors. 3.6% of Academy Sports and Outdoors shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 80.0% of Leatt shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Academy Sports and Outdoors and Leatt’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Academy Sports and Outdoors	6.27%	18.24%	7.18%
Leatt	4.12%	5.87%	4.97%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Academy Sports and Outdoors and Leatt”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Academy Sports and Outdoors	$5.93 billion	0.62	$418.45 million	$5.47	10.01
Leatt	$44.03 million	1.31	-$2.20 million	$0.36	25.78

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Academy Sports and Outdoors and Leatt, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Academy Sports and Outdoors	0	11	10	0	2.48
Leatt	0	0	0	0	0.00

Academy Sports and Outdoors currently has a consensus target price of $59.68, suggesting a potential upside of 9.05%. Given Academy Sports and Outdoors’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Academy Sports and Outdoors is more favorable than Leatt.

Volatility and Risk

Academy Sports and Outdoors has a beta of 1.25, suggesting that its share price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Leatt has a beta of 0.89, suggesting that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Academy Sports and Outdoors beats Leatt on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Academy Sports and Outdoors

Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a sporting goods and outdoor recreational retailer in the United States. The company outdoor division comprises camping products, such as coolers and drinkware, and camping accessories and equipment,; fishing products, including marine equipment and fishing rods, reels, and baits and equipment; and hunting products, which includes firearms, ammunition, archery and archery equipment, camouflage apparel, waders, shooting accessories, gun safes, optics, airguns, and hunting equipment. Its sports and recreation division offers fitness equipment, fitness accessories, and nutrition supplies; team and specialty sports equipment, including baseball, football, basketball, soccer, golf, racket sports, volleyball, backpacks, and sports bags; recreation products, which includes patio furniture, outdoor cooking, trampolines, play sets, watersports, and pet equipment, as well as wheeled goods including bicycles, skateboards, and other ride-on toys; and electronics and watches, as well as front-end products, such as consumables, batteries, etc. The company's apparel division provides outdoor and seasonal apparel, denim, work apparel, graphic t-shirts, and accessories; boys and girls outdoor, and athletic apparel; sporting and fitness apparel; and professional and collegiate team licensed apparel and accessories. Its footwear division offers casual shoes, slippers, seasonal footwear, and socks; work and western boots, shoes, and hunting footwear; boys and girls footwear; athletic footwear, such as running shoes, athletic lifestyle, and training shoes; and team and specialty sports footwear, and slides. The company sells its products under the Academy Sports + Outdoors, Magellan Outdoors, BCG, O'rageous, Game Winner, Outdoor Gourmet, and Freely brand names. Academy Sports and Outdoors, Inc. was founded in 1938 and is headquartered in Katy, Texas.

About Leatt

Leatt Corporation designs, develops, markets, and distributes personal protective equipment for participants of motor sports and leisure activities worldwide. The company offers Leatt-Brace system, an injection molded neck protection system designed to prevent injuries to the cervical spine and neck. It also provides helmets for head and brain protection; and body armor products, including chest protectors, full upper body protectors, upper body protection vests, back protectors, knee braces, knee and elbow guards, off-road motorcycle boots, and mountain biking shoes. In addition, the company offers other products, parts, and accessories, such as goggles; toolbelt, duffel, gear, helmet bags, hats, and hydration kits; casual clothing, caps, and sunglasses; and apparel that comprises suits, jackets, jerseys, pants, shorts, socks, and gloves, as well as aftermarket support products. Further, it acts as the original equipment manufacturer for personal protective equipment sold by other brands. The company's products are used by riders of motorcycles, bicycles, snowmobiles, and ATVs. It sells its products to customers through a network of distributors and retailers; and direct to end consumers through digital channels and online store at leatt.com. The company was formerly known as Treadzone, Inc. and changed its name to Leatt Corporation in May 2005. The company was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Durbanville, South Africa.