Citizens (NYSE:CIA – Get Free Report) and Abacus Life (NASDAQ:ABL – Get Free Report) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, dividends and risk.
Volatility & Risk
Citizens has a beta of 0.36, suggesting that its share price is 64% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Abacus Life has a beta of -0.06, suggesting that its share price is 106% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Citizens and Abacus Life”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Citizens | $247.02 million | 1.06 | $14.91 million | $0.21 | 24.71 |
| Abacus Life | $196.55 million | 4.13 | -$23.96 million | $0.08 | 103.75 |
Citizens has higher revenue and earnings than Abacus Life. Citizens is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Abacus Life, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
13.7% of Citizens shares are held by institutional investors. 1.6% of Citizens shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 47.0% of Abacus Life shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Profitability
This table compares Citizens and Abacus Life’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Citizens | 4.40% | 6.54% | 0.84% |
| Abacus Life | 5.62% | 16.90% | 8.24% |
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Citizens and Abacus Life, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Citizens | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Abacus Life | 1 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2.75 |
Abacus Life has a consensus target price of $12.67, indicating a potential upside of 52.61%. Given Abacus Life’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Abacus Life is more favorable than Citizens.
Summary
Abacus Life beats Citizens on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Citizens
Citizens, Inc. provides life insurance products in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Life Insurance and Home Service Insurance. The Life Insurance segment issues ordinary whole life insurance and endowment policies in the United States dollar-denominated amounts to non-U.S. residents in through independent marketing agencies and consultants. The Home Service Insurance segment offers final expense life insurance and property insurance policies to middle-and lower-income households, as well as whole life products in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Arkansas. This segment provides its products and services through funeral homes and independent agents. The company provides accident and health insurance policies. Citizens, Inc. was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.
About Abacus Life
Abacus Life, Inc. operates as an alternative asset manager specializing in life insurance products. It purchases life insurance policies from consumers seeking liquidity and manages policies over time via trading, holding, and/or servicing. The company was founded in 2004 and is based in Orlando, Florida.
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