Head-To-Head Survey: Greenlight Capital Re (NASDAQ:GLRE) and Root (NASDAQ:ROOT)

Greenlight Capital Re (NASDAQ:GLRE) and Root (NASDAQ:ROOT) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability and earnings.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Greenlight Capital Re and Root, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Greenlight Capital Re	0	1	1	0	2.50
Root	1	5	1	0	2.00

Root has a consensus price target of $57.75, indicating a potential upside of 32.07%. Given Root’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Root is more favorable than Greenlight Capital Re.

Risk & Volatility

Greenlight Capital Re has a beta of 0.28, indicating that its share price is 72% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Root has a beta of 3.06, indicating that its share price is 206% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

41.5% of Greenlight Capital Re shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 59.8% of Root shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.7% of Greenlight Capital Re shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 12.0% of Root shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Greenlight Capital Re and Root”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Greenlight Capital Re	$729.78 million	0.72	$74.83 million	$1.70	9.53
Root	$1.52 billion	0.45	$40.30 million	$4.75	9.21

Greenlight Capital Re has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Root. Root is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Greenlight Capital Re, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Greenlight Capital Re and Root’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Greenlight Capital Re	8.56%	8.26%	2.62%
Root	5.03%	25.10%	4.68%

Summary

Root beats Greenlight Capital Re on 7 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Greenlight Capital Re

Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd., through its subsidiaries, operates as a property and casualty reinsurance company worldwide. The company offers various property reinsurance products and services, including automobile physical damage, personal lines, and commercial lines. It also provides casualty reinsurance products and services comprising general liability, motor liability, professional liability, and worker's compensation; and accident and health, transactional liability, mortgage insurance, surety, trade credit, marine, and energy, as well as other specialty products, such as aviation, crop, cyber, political, and terrorism products. The company markets its products through reinsurance brokers. Greenlight Capital Re, Ltd. was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in Grand Cayman, the Cayman Islands.

About Root

Root, Inc. provides insurance products and services in the United States. The company offers automobile, homeowners, and renters insurance products. It operates a direct-to-consumer model; and serves customers primarily through mobile applications, as well as through its website. The company's direct distribution channels also cover digital, media, and referral channels, as well as distribution partners and agencies. Root, Inc. was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.