Reviewing White Mountains Insurance Group (NYSE:WTM) and Everest Group (NYSE:EG)

White Mountains Insurance Group (NYSE:WTM) and Everest Group (NYSE:EG) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, dividends and institutional ownership.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

88.7% of White Mountains Insurance Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.6% of Everest Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.0% of White Mountains Insurance Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of Everest Group shares are owned 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.

Risk & Volatility

White Mountains Insurance Group has a beta of 0.28, indicating that its stock price is 72% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Everest Group has a beta of 0.23, indicating that its stock price is 77% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares White Mountains Insurance Group and Everest Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
White Mountains Insurance Group	26.86%	3.33%	1.55%
Everest Group	11.70%	13.71%	3.33%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for White Mountains Insurance Group and Everest Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
White Mountains Insurance Group	0	1	1	0	2.50
Everest Group	0	9	5	0	2.36

Everest Group has a consensus price target of $426.27, suggesting a potential upside of 1.64%. Given Everest Group’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Everest Group is more favorable than White Mountains Insurance Group.

Dividends

White Mountains Insurance Group pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.0%. Everest Group pays an annual dividend of $8.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. White Mountains Insurance Group pays out 0.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Everest Group pays out 16.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Everest Group has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Everest Group is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares White Mountains Insurance Group and Everest Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
White Mountains Insurance Group	$2.76 billion	1.96	$1.11 billion	$377.51	5.99
Everest Group	$17.50 billion	0.89	$1.59 billion	$47.32	8.86

Everest Group has higher revenue and earnings than White Mountains Insurance Group. White Mountains Insurance Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Everest Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Everest Group beats White Mountains Insurance Group on 10 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About White Mountains Insurance Group

White Mountains Insurance Group is a holding company focused on property and casualty insurance, reinsurance and related financial services. Rather than operating as a single insurer, it owns and invests in businesses with distinct specialties. Its businesses include Ark, a global specialty insurance and reinsurance group; HG Global, which provides financial backing for municipal bond insurance through Build America Mutual; and Kudu, which offers permanent capital solutions to asset and wealth management firms.

About Everest Group

Everest Group, Ltd. (NYSE: EG) is a global insurance and reinsurance company headquartered in Bermuda. It provides property and casualty coverage to businesses, organizations and other insurers, helping clients manage risks ranging from routine exposures to complex and specialty risks. The company offers reinsurance through treaty and facultative arrangements, as well as primary insurance across a range of commercial and specialty lines. Its operations serve clients in the United States and international markets, including Europe, Canada, Latin America and Asia-Pacific.