Comparing BrightView (NYSE:BV) & SPAR Group (NASDAQ:SGRP)

SPAR Group (NASDAQ:SGRP) and BrightView (NYSE:BV) are both small-cap business services companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability and risk.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

9.6% of SPAR Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.4% of BrightView shares are held by institutional investors. 50.9% of SPAR Group shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.8% of BrightView shares are held 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.

Profitability

This table compares SPAR Group and BrightView’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SPAR Group	-9.52%	-34.89%	-12.15%
BrightView	1.90%	7.85%	2.98%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares SPAR Group and BrightView”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SPAR Group	$163.63 million	0.11	-$3.15 million	($0.07)	-10.97
BrightView	$2.67 billion	0.47	$56.00 million	($0.02)	-671.50

BrightView has higher revenue and earnings than SPAR Group. BrightView is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SPAR Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

SPAR Group has a beta of 0.07, suggesting that its share price is 93% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BrightView has a beta of 1.26, suggesting that its share price is 26% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for SPAR Group and BrightView, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SPAR Group	1	0	0	0	1.00
BrightView	3	2	2	2	2.33

BrightView has a consensus target price of $14.68, suggesting a potential upside of 9.33%. Given BrightView’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe BrightView is more favorable than SPAR Group.

Summary

BrightView beats SPAR Group on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SPAR Group

SPAR Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides merchandising and brand marketing services in the Americas, the Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East, and Africa. The company offers merchandising and marketing services, such as resets and cut-ins; price and inventory audits; stock replenishment and rotation services; out of stock management; promotional event setup; and display management, as well as category management and set up services comprising category and product resets; planogram maintenance; display and shelf services; and point of purchase installation and management. It also provides remodel and retail transformation consisting of store remodels, store department resets, fixture and banner installations, pop-up store services, and store closings; and assembly and installation services, including assembly of merchandise in stores, in-store services, office setup/down-sizing services, and national in-home furniture assembly services. In addition, the company offers business analytics and insights services, such as product dashboards, stock out reporting, visit reporting, real-time service insights, and share of shelf analytics; and fulfillment and distribution services comprising distribution center staffing, point of purchase fulfillment services, kiosk prep, returns processing, picking and packing services, and inventory services. The company serves mass merchandisers; HBAs; pharmacies; and grocery, discount, dollar, convenience, cash and carry, home improvement, consumer electronics, automotive aftermarket, office supply, personal technology, beverage, household products, consumables, financial products, and independent stores. SPAR Group, Inc. was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

About BrightView

BrightView Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides commercial landscaping services in the United States. It operates through two segments, Maintenance Services and Development Services. The Maintenance Services segment delivers a suite of recurring commercial landscaping services, including mowing, gardening, mulching and snow removal, water management, irrigation maintenance, tree care, golf course maintenance, and specialty turf maintenance. Its customers' properties include corporate and commercial properties, homeowners associations, public parks, hotels and resorts, airport authorities, municipalities, hospitals and other healthcare facilities, educational institutions, restaurants and retail, and golf courses. This segment's customer base includes approximately 8,800 office parks and corporate campuses 7,100 residential communities, and 550 educational institutions. The Development Services segment offers landscape architecture and development services for new facilities and redesign projects. Its services include project design and management services, landscape architecture and installation, irrigation installation, tree moving and installation, pool and water features, sports field, and other services. BrightView Holdings, Inc. also operates as official field consultant to various league baseball. The company was founded in 1939 and is headquartered in Blue Bell, Pennsylvania.