Financial Comparison: Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD) and TechTarget (NASDAQ:TTGT)

Ziff Davis (NASDAQ:ZD – Get Rating) and TechTarget (NASDAQ:TTGT – Get Rating) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and valuation.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Ziff Davis and TechTarget, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ziff Davis	0	3	6	0	2.67
TechTarget	1	3	3	0	2.29

Ziff Davis currently has a consensus price target of $98.80, indicating a potential upside of 32.60%. TechTarget has a consensus price target of $48.63, indicating a potential upside of 40.29%. Given TechTarget’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe TechTarget is more favorable than Ziff Davis.

Profitability

This table compares Ziff Davis and TechTarget’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ziff Davis	4.58%	15.76%	8.17%
TechTarget	13.99%	23.59%	6.96%

Volatility & Risk

Ziff Davis has a beta of 1.15, meaning that its stock price is 15% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, TechTarget has a beta of 0.96, meaning that its stock price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Ziff Davis and TechTarget’s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ziff Davis	$1.39 billion	2.53	$63.76 million	$1.25	59.61
TechTarget	$297.49 million	3.34	$41.61 million	$1.30	26.66

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

99.1% of Ziff Davis shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 99.6% of TechTarget shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.5% of Ziff Davis shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.9% of TechTarget shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

About Ziff Davis

(Get Rating)

Ziff Davis, Inc. is a digital media and internet company. It operates through the following segments: Digital Media and Cybersecurity and Martech. The Digital Media segment consists of a portfolio of web properties and apps which include IGN, RetailMeNot, Mashable, PCMag, Humble Bundle,Speedtest, Offers, Black Friday, MedPageToday, Everyday Health, BabyCenter and What to Expect, among others. The Cybersecurity and Martech segment engages in delivering and consuming real time business technology services, resources and solutions over the internet. The company was founded by Jaye Muller and John F. Rieley in December 1995 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

About TechTarget

(Get Rating)

TechTarget, Inc. engages in the provision of data and analytics and software solutions for purchase intent-driven marketing and sales data which delivers business impact for business-to-business companies. It operates through the North America and International geographical segments. Its solutions include tech marketing, ABM, tech sales, and intent-driven services. The company was founded by Don Hawk and Greg Strakosch on September 14, 1999 and is headquartered in Newton, MA.