Critical Comparison: Skillsoft (NYSE:SKIL) vs. TransUnion (NYSE:TRU)

Skillsoft (NYSE:SKIL) and TransUnion (NYSE:TRU) are both industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, risk, earnings and valuation.

Risk and Volatility

Skillsoft has a beta of 2.46, suggesting that its stock price is 146% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, TransUnion has a beta of 1.56, suggesting that its stock price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Skillsoft and TransUnion’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Skillsoft	-36.13%	-74.19%	4.10%
TransUnion	15.83%	16.51%	6.77%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Skillsoft and TransUnion”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Skillsoft	$512.67 million	0.05	-$139.82 million	($18.53)	-0.16
TransUnion	$5.04 billion	3.07	$455.40 million	$4.11	19.73

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Skillsoft and TransUnion, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Skillsoft	1	2	0	0	1.67
TransUnion	1	8	10	0	2.47

TransUnion has a consensus target price of $90.72, indicating a potential upside of 11.87%. Given TransUnion’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe TransUnion is more favorable than Skillsoft.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

87.0% of Skillsoft shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.2% of Skillsoft shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of TransUnion shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

TransUnion beats Skillsoft on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Skillsoft

Skillsoft provides digital learning content and technology for businesses and other organizations. Its offerings help employees develop skills in areas such as technology, leadership, business, and workplace compliance. The company’s learning platform, Percipio, gives users access to courses and other learning resources, including books and videos. Skillsoft also offers instructor-led training and technical skills education through its business units and brands, including Codecademy, which it acquired in 2022.

About TransUnion

TransUnion is a global information and insights company that helps businesses assess risk, prevent fraud and make informed decisions. Its services include credit reporting and scoring, identity verification, fraud detection, and data and analytics solutions for industries such as financial services, retail, insurance and telecommunications. The company also provides consumers with access to credit information and tools to monitor and manage their financial identities. Its offerings include credit reports, credit monitoring and identity-protection services.