Comparing Latitude 360 (OTCMKTS:LATX) & Ark Restaurants (NASDAQ:ARKR)

Ark Restaurants (NASDAQ:ARKR) and Latitude 360 (OTCMKTS:LATX) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and valuation.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Ark Restaurants and Latitude 360, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ark Restaurants	1	0	0	0	1.00
Latitude 360	0	0	0	0	0.00

Given Latitude 360’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Latitude 360 is more favorable than Ark Restaurants.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

32.0% of Ark Restaurants shares are owned by institutional investors. 35.7% of Ark Restaurants shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 24.5% of Latitude 360 shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Ark Restaurants and Latitude 360″s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ark Restaurants	$171.83 million	0.16	-$3.90 million	($3.89)	-1.90
Latitude 360	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Latitude 360 has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Ark Restaurants.

Profitability

This table compares Ark Restaurants and Latitude 360’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ark Restaurants	-8.15%	-11.48%	-3.19%
Latitude 360	N/A	N/A	N/A

About Ark Restaurants

Ark Restaurants Corp., through its subsidiaries, owns and operates restaurants and bars in the United States. It operates restaurants in New York City; Washington, D.C.; Las Vegas, Nevada; Atlantic City, New Jersey; Florida; and Alabama, as well as fast food concepts and catering operations. The company was incorporated in 1983 and is based in New York, New York.

About Latitude 360

Latitude 360, Inc. operates as a casual dining restaurant/entertainment company in the United States. The company plans, develops, constructs, and operates restaurant/entertainment venues. Its restaurant/entertainment venues feature a grille and bar; luxury bowling lanes; a dine-in movie theater with home theater-style seating; game room; a dine-in live performance theater; a HD sports theater; a bar with a dance floor and stage for the DJs and regional bands every weekend; and a luxury boutique cigar lounge. The company operates three restaurant/entertainment venues in Jacksonville, Florida, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Indianapolis, Indiana. Its restaurant/entertainment venues serve consumers and corporate clients. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida. On January 10, 2017, an involuntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 was filed against Latitude 360, Inc. in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Florida. On February 7, 2017, the involuntary petition was approved by the Court.