DICK’S Sporting Goods (NYSE:DKS) versus Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) Head to Head Analysis

Asbury Automotive Group (NYSE:ABG) and DICK’S Sporting Goods (NYSE:DKS) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, risk and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Asbury Automotive Group and DICK’S Sporting Goods’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Asbury Automotive Group	2.83%	12.72%	4.31%
DICK’S Sporting Goods	3.97%	19.21%	6.07%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

89.8% of DICK’S Sporting Goods shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of Asbury Automotive Group shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 28.9% of DICK’S Sporting Goods shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

Asbury Automotive Group has a beta of 0.71, meaning that its share price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, DICK’S Sporting Goods has a beta of 1.11, meaning that its share price is 11% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Asbury Automotive Group and DICK’S Sporting Goods, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Asbury Automotive Group	1	6	2	0	2.11
DICK’S Sporting Goods	3	9	11	0	2.35

Asbury Automotive Group currently has a consensus target price of $237.83, indicating a potential upside of 26.63%. DICK’S Sporting Goods has a consensus target price of $167.20, indicating a potential upside of 35.10%. Given DICK’S Sporting Goods’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe DICK’S Sporting Goods is more favorable than Asbury Automotive Group.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Asbury Automotive Group and DICK’S Sporting Goods”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Asbury Automotive Group	$17.98 billion	0.19	$492.00 million	$26.74	7.02
DICK’S Sporting Goods	$17.22 billion	0.64	$849.24 million	$9.31	13.29

DICK’S Sporting Goods has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Asbury Automotive Group. Asbury Automotive Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than DICK’S Sporting Goods, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

DICK’S Sporting Goods beats Asbury Automotive Group on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Asbury Automotive Group

Asbury Automotive Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an automotive retailer in the United States. It offers a range of automotive products and services, including new and used vehicles; and vehicle repair and maintenance services, replacement parts, and collision repair services. The company also provides finance and insurance products, including arranging vehicle financing through third parties; and aftermarket products, such as extended service contracts, guaranteed asset protection debt cancellation, prepaid maintenance, and disability and accident insurance. Asbury Automotive Group, Inc. was founded in 1996 and is based in Duluth, Georgia.

About DICK’S Sporting Goods

DICK’s Sporting Goods, Inc. engages in the retailing of an extensive assortment of authentic sports equipment, apparel, footwear, and accessories. It also offers its products both online and through mobile applications. The company was founded by Richard T. Stack in 1948 and is headquartered in Coraopolis, PA.