Comparing Forge Global (NYSE:FRGE) & Intercorp Financial Services (NYSE:IFS)

Intercorp Financial Services (NYSE:IFS) and Forge Global (NYSE:FRGE) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and valuation.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Intercorp Financial Services and Forge Global”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Intercorp Financial Services	$1.67 billion	3.27	$542.25 million	$4.82	9.88
Forge Global	$92.88 million	6.71	-$66.33 million	($5.20)	-8.65

Intercorp Financial Services has higher revenue and earnings than Forge Global. Forge Global is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Intercorp Financial Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Intercorp Financial Services and Forge Global’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Intercorp Financial Services	28.74%	16.69%	2.01%
Forge Global	-71.87%	-29.06%	-24.63%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

40.7% of Forge Global shares are held by institutional investors. 4.5% of Forge Global shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Intercorp Financial Services has a beta of 0.83, suggesting that its share price is 17% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Forge Global has a beta of 2.18, suggesting that its share price is 118% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Intercorp Financial Services and Forge Global, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Intercorp Financial Services	0	1	2	0	2.67
Forge Global	1	5	0	0	1.83

Intercorp Financial Services currently has a consensus target price of $48.00, indicating a potential upside of 0.83%. Forge Global has a consensus target price of $42.00, indicating a potential downside of 6.67%. Given Intercorp Financial Services’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Intercorp Financial Services is more favorable than Forge Global.

Summary

Intercorp Financial Services beats Forge Global on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Intercorp Financial Services

Intercorp Financial Services Inc., together with its subsidiaries, offers banking, insurance, wealth management, and payment services for retail and commercial clients in Peru. The company provides loans, credit facilities, deposits, and current accounts; life annuity products with single-premium payment and conventional life insurance products, as well as other retail insurance products; and brokerage and investment management services. It engages in the development, management, operation, and processing of credit and debit cards; facilitation of payments and services through commercial stores; and installation and maintenance of infrastructure for transactions through electronic commerce modality and networks of payment methods processors. The company was incorporated in 1897 and is based in Lima, Peru. Intercorp Financial Services Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Intercorp Perú Ltd.

About Forge Global

Forge Global Holdings, Inc. operates a financial services platform in California. The company's platform solutions include trading solutions, a platform that connects investors with private company stockholders and enables them to facilitate private share transactions; and custody solutions, a non-depository trust company that enables clients to securely custody and manage assets through an online portal. It also provides data solutions, such as information and insight to navigate, analyze, and make investment decisions to market participants in the private market. The company was founded in 2014 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.