Critical Comparison: Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) vs. ATIF (NASDAQ:ZBAI)

Exponent (NASDAQ:EXPO) and ATIF (NASDAQ:ZBAI) are both business services companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and valuation.

Risk and Volatility

Exponent has a beta of 0.79, indicating that its share price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ATIF has a beta of -0.27, indicating that its share price is 127% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Exponent and ATIF, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Exponent	0	2	2	0	2.50
ATIF	1	0	0	0	1.00

Exponent currently has a consensus target price of $92.50, suggesting a potential upside of 27.10%. Given Exponent’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Exponent is more favorable than ATIF.

Profitability

This table compares Exponent and ATIF’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Exponent	18.21%	25.51%	13.85%
ATIF	N/A	-59.44%	-54.65%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Exponent and ATIF”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Exponent	$582.01 million	6.24	$106.01 million	$2.08	34.99
ATIF	$1.20 million	7.37	-$4.60 million	($7.19)	-0.93

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

92.4% of Exponent shares are held by institutional investors. 1.6% of Exponent shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 32.2% of ATIF shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Exponent beats ATIF on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Exponent

Exponent, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a science and engineering consulting company in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Engineering and Other Scientific, and Environmental and Health. The Engineering and Other Scientific segment provides services in the areas of biomechanics, biomedical engineering and sciences, buildings and structures, civil engineering, construction consulting, data sciences, electrical engineering and computer science, human factors, materials and corrosion engineering, mechanical engineering, polymer science and materials chemistry, thermal sciences, and vehicle engineering. The Environmental and Health segment offers services in the areas of chemical regulation and food safety, ecological and biological sciences, environmental and earth sciences, and health sciences. The company offers approximately 90 technical disciplines to solve pressing and complicated challenges facing stakeholders. It serves clients in chemical, construction, consumer products, energy, food, beverage and nutrition, government, life sciences, insurance, manufacturing, technology, industrial equipment, transportation, and other sectors of the economy. The company was formerly known as The Failure Group, Inc. and changed its name to Exponent, Inc. in 1998. The company was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Menlo Park, California.

About ATIF

ATIF Holdings Ltd. engages in the provision of financial consulting services. It is also involved in merger and acquisition business advisory, post-listing compliance, management support, and related services. The company was founded on January 5, 2015 and is headquartered in Lake Forest, CA.