Head-To-Head Contrast: KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) & SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC)

SEI Investments (NASDAQ:SEIC) and KKR & Co. Inc. (NYSE:KKR) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Dividends

SEI Investments pays an annual dividend of $0.98 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.2%. KKR & Co. Inc. pays an annual dividend of $0.74 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. SEI Investments pays out 18.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. KKR & Co. Inc. pays out 31.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. SEI Investments has raised its dividend for 34 consecutive years and KKR & Co. Inc. has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. SEI Investments is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares SEI Investments and KKR & Co. Inc.’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SEI Investments	31.09%	30.21%	26.06%
KKR & Co. Inc.	13.84%	6.12%	1.06%

Risk & Volatility

SEI Investments has a beta of 0.98, meaning that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, KKR & Co. Inc. has a beta of 2, meaning that its stock price is 100% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for SEI Investments and KKR & Co. Inc., as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SEI Investments	0	3	5	0	2.63
KKR & Co. Inc.	1	4	11	1	2.71

SEI Investments currently has a consensus target price of $105.20, suggesting a potential upside of 26.62%. KKR & Co. Inc. has a consensus target price of $158.79, suggesting a potential upside of 20.12%. Given SEI Investments’ higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe SEI Investments is more favorable than KKR & Co. Inc..

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares SEI Investments and KKR & Co. Inc.”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SEI Investments	$2.13 billion	4.79	$581.19 million	$5.44	15.27
KKR & Co. Inc.	$21.88 billion	5.39	$3.08 billion	$2.36	56.01

KKR & Co. Inc. has higher revenue and earnings than SEI Investments. SEI Investments is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than KKR & Co. Inc., indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

70.6% of SEI Investments shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 76.3% of KKR & Co. Inc. shares are owned by institutional investors. 14.6% of SEI Investments shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 39.3% of KKR & Co. Inc. shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

KKR & Co. Inc. beats SEI Investments on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SEI Investments

SEI Investments Company is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides wealth management, retirement and investment solutions, asset management, asset administration, investment processing outsourcing solutions, financial services, and investment advisory services to its clients. It provides its services to private banks, independent financial advisers, institutional investors, investment managers, investment advisors, wealth management organizations, corporations, retirement scheme sponsors, not-for-profit organizations, hedge fund managers, registered investment advisers, independent broker-dealers, financial planners, life insurance agents, defined-benefit schemes, defined-contribution schemes, endowments, foundations, and board-designated fund, through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm manages separate client-focused portfolios. It also launches and manages equity, fixed income, and balanced mutual funds, through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm invests in public equity and fixed income markets. It employs fundamental and quantitative analysis with a focus on top-down and bottom-up analysis to make its investments, through its subsidiaries. SEI Investments Company was founded in 1968 and is based in Oaks, Pennsylvania.

About KKR & Co. Inc.

KKR & Co., Inc. operates as an investment firm. It offers alternative asset management as well as capital markets and insurance solutions. The firm’s business segments include Asset Management and Insurance Business. The Asset Management segment engages in providing private equity, real assets, credit and liquid strategies, capital markets, and principal activities. The Insurance Business segment offers retirement, life insurance and reinsurance solutions to clients across individual and institutional markets. The company was founded by Henry Kravis, George R. Roberts, and Jerome Kholberg on May 1, 1976 and is headquartered in New York, NY.