Reviewing Ermenegildo Zegna (NYSE:ZGN) and Birkenstock (NYSE:BIRK)

Birkenstock (NYSE:BIRK) and Ermenegildo Zegna (NYSE:ZGN) are both mid-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and risk.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Birkenstock and Ermenegildo Zegna, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Birkenstock	1	4	13	0	2.67
Ermenegildo Zegna	1	4	5	0	2.40

Birkenstock presently has a consensus price target of $53.28, suggesting a potential upside of 34.56%. Ermenegildo Zegna has a consensus price target of $13.13, suggesting a potential downside of 4.92%. Given Birkenstock’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Birkenstock is more favorable than Ermenegildo Zegna.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

19.9% of Birkenstock shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 12.9% of Ermenegildo Zegna shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of Ermenegildo Zegna shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Birkenstock and Ermenegildo Zegna’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Birkenstock	16.26%	12.95%	7.15%
Ermenegildo Zegna	N/A	N/A	N/A

Volatility and Risk

Birkenstock has a beta of 1.3, suggesting that its stock price is 30% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ermenegildo Zegna has a beta of 0.88, suggesting that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Birkenstock and Ermenegildo Zegna”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Birkenstock	$2.32 billion	3.14	$385.46 million	$2.21	17.92
Ermenegildo Zegna	$2.17 billion	2.70	$111.54 million	N/A	N/A

Birkenstock has higher revenue and earnings than Ermenegildo Zegna.

Summary

Birkenstock beats Ermenegildo Zegna on 11 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Birkenstock

Birkenstock Holding plc manufactures and sells footwear products. It also offers sandals, shoes, closed-toe silhouettes, skincare products, and accessories. The company sells its products through e-commerce sites and a network of owned retail stores, as well as business-to-business channels. It operates in the United States, Brazil, Canada, Mexico, Europe, APMA, and internationally. Birkenstock Holding plc was founded in 1774 and is based in London, the United Kingdom. Birkenstock Holding plc is a subsidiary of BK LC Lux MidCo S.à r.l.

About Ermenegildo Zegna

Ermenegildo Zegna N.V., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, markets, and distributes luxury menswear, footwear, leather goods, and other accessories under the Zegna and the Thom Browne brands. It provides luxury leisurewear for men; formal suits, tuxedos, shirts, blazers, formal overcoats, and accessories; leather accessories comprising shoes, bags, belts, and small leather accessories; and fragrances. The company also offers luxury womenswear and childrenswear under the Thom Browne brand, as well as provides eyewear, cufflinks and jewelry, watches, underwear, and beachwear manufactured by third parties under licenses. It serves customers through its retail stores and online channels in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, North America, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company was founded in 1910 and is based in Trivero, Italy. Ermenegildo Zegna N.V. operates as a subsidiary of Monterubello Societa’ Semplice.