Critical Survey: Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) vs. Asos Pls (OTCMKTS:ASOMY)

Asos Pls (OTCMKTS:ASOMY) and Levi Strauss & Co. (NYSE:LEVI) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, dividends and valuation.

Volatility and Risk

Asos Pls has a beta of 2.23, meaning that its share price is 123% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Levi Strauss & Co. has a beta of 1.33, meaning that its share price is 33% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Asos Pls and Levi Strauss & Co.’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Asos Pls	N/A	N/A	N/A
Levi Strauss & Co.	9.66%	25.79%	8.61%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Asos Pls and Levi Strauss & Co., as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Asos Pls	0	0	0	2	4.00
Levi Strauss & Co.	0	3	12	0	2.80

Levi Strauss & Co. has a consensus target price of $27.46, indicating a potential upside of 7.62%. Given Levi Strauss & Co.’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Levi Strauss & Co. is more favorable than Asos Pls.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

69.1% of Levi Strauss & Co. shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.1% of Levi Strauss & Co. shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Asos Pls and Levi Strauss & Co.”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Asos Pls	$3.23 billion	0.18	-$388.99 million	N/A	N/A
Levi Strauss & Co.	$6.61 billion	1.48	$578.10 million	$1.62	15.75

Levi Strauss & Co. has higher revenue and earnings than Asos Pls.

Summary

Levi Strauss & Co. beats Asos Pls on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Asos Pls

ASOS Plc operates as an online fashion retailer in the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Sweden, the Netherlands, Denmark, Poland, and internationally. It offers womenswear and menswear products. The company sells its products under the ASOS Design, ASOS Edition, ASOS Luxe, ASOS 4505, Collusion, Reclaimed Vintage, Topshop, Topman, Miss Selfridge, HIIT, AsYou, Dark Future, UNRVLLD/SPPLY, Crooked Tongues, Daysocial, Actual, and Weekend Collective brands, as well as through third-party brands. It is also involved in the employer of marketing staff and payment processing businesses, as well as acts as a vehicle for issue of convertible bonds. ASOS Plc was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

About Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi Strauss & Co. engages in the design, marketing, and sale of apparel products. The company offers jeans, casual and dress pants, tops, shorts, skirts, jackets, footwear, and related accessories. It operates through the following geographical segments: Americas, Europe, and Asia. The company was founded by Levi Strauss in 1853 and is headquartered in San Francisco, CA.