Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) & United Parks & Resorts (NYSE:PRKS) Head-To-Head Analysis

United Parks & Resorts (NYSE:PRKS) and Planet Fitness (NYSE:PLNT) are both mid-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and risk.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for United Parks & Resorts and Planet Fitness, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Parks & Resorts	2	7	4	0	2.15
Planet Fitness	0	3	11	2	2.94

United Parks & Resorts presently has a consensus price target of $50.82, suggesting a potential upside of 34.15%. Planet Fitness has a consensus price target of $120.08, suggesting a potential upside of 22.74%. Given United Parks & Resorts’ higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe United Parks & Resorts is more favorable than Planet Fitness.

Profitability

This table compares United Parks & Resorts and Planet Fitness’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Parks & Resorts	10.83%	-44.47%	6.88%
Planet Fitness	15.97%	-126.58%	8.08%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares United Parks & Resorts and Planet Fitness”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Parks & Resorts	$1.73 billion	1.20	$227.50 million	$3.27	11.59
Planet Fitness	$1.18 billion	6.90	$172.04 million	$2.45	39.93

United Parks & Resorts has higher revenue and earnings than Planet Fitness. United Parks & Resorts is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Planet Fitness, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

95.5% of Planet Fitness shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of United Parks & Resorts shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.9% of Planet Fitness shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

United Parks & Resorts has a beta of 1.28, suggesting that its stock price is 28% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Planet Fitness has a beta of 1.27, suggesting that its stock price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Planet Fitness beats United Parks & Resorts on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Parks & Resorts

United Parks & Resorts, Inc. is a holding company, which engages in the ownership and operation of theme parks. Its portfolio includes SeaWorld, Busch Gardens, Aquatica, Discovery Cove, Sesame Place, and Sea Rescue. The company was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Orlando, FL.

About Planet Fitness

Planet Fitness, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, franchises and operates fitness centers under the Planet Fitness brand. The company operates through three segments: Franchise, Corporate-Owned Stores, and Equipment. The company is involved in franchising business in the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada, Panama, Mexico, and Australia. It engages in the sale of fitness equipment to franchisee-owned stores in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. In addition, the company operates corporate-owned stores in the United States and Canada. Planet Fitness, Inc. was founded in 1992 and is headquartered in Hampton, New Hampshire.