Analyzing Lichen International (NASDAQ:LICN) and Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR)

Burford Capital (NYSE:BUR) and Lichen International (NASDAQ:LICN) are both finance 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 Burford Capital and Lichen International, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Burford Capital	0	0	2	1	3.33
Lichen International	1	0	0	0	1.00

Burford Capital currently has a consensus price target of $18.00, indicating a potential upside of 67.99%. Given Burford Capital’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Burford Capital is more favorable than Lichen International.

Profitability

This table compares Burford Capital and Lichen International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Burford Capital	37.08%	7.48%	3.88%
Lichen International	N/A	N/A	N/A

Risk and Volatility

Burford Capital has a beta of 0.58, suggesting that its share price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lichen International has a beta of 1.09, suggesting that its share price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Burford Capital and Lichen International”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Burford Capital	$546.09 million	4.29	$146.48 million	$1.08	9.92
Lichen International	$41.48 million	0.06	-$6.14 million	N/A	N/A

Burford Capital has higher revenue and earnings than Lichen International.

Summary

Burford Capital beats Lichen International on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Burford Capital

Burford Capital Limited provides legal finance products and services worldwide. The company operates through two segments, Capital Provision, and Asset Management and Other Provision. The Capital Provision segment provides capital to the legal industry or in connection with legal matters directly and through investment in private funds; legal risk management services; lower risk legal finance business focusing on pre-settlement litigation matters with lower risk and lower expected returns; post-settlement finance; and complex strategies in which it acts as a principal and acquires assets that are mispriced. The Asset Management and Other Services segment provides services to the legal industry, including litigation insurance. Burford Capital Limited was incorporated in 2009 and is based in Saint Peter Port, Guernsey.

About Lichen International

Lichen China Limited, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an investment holding company, provides financial and taxation, education support, and software and maintenance services in the People's Republic of China and internationally. The company offers financial and taxation related management consultation, internal control management consultation, annual or regular consultation, and internal training and general consultation services; and education support services, including marketing, operational, and technical support, as well as sells teaching and learning materials. It also provides Lichen Education Accounting Practice System V1.0, a financial and taxation training software, and academic affairs management system to partnered institutions under the partnership agreements, as well as offers software installation, training, and after sales technical and maintenance support services. Lichen China Limited was founded in 2004 and is based in Jinjiang, China.