Financial Analysis: Corporacion America Airports (NYSE:CAAP) versus LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM)

LATAM Airlines Group (NYSE:LTM) and Corporacion America Airports (NYSE:CAAP) are both transportation companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, valuation and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares LATAM Airlines Group and Corporacion America Airports’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
LATAM Airlines Group	8.99%	136.76%	7.71%
Corporacion America Airports	9.39%	11.64%	4.20%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

13.0% of Corporacion America Airports shares are held by institutional investors. 7.8% of LATAM Airlines Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

LATAM Airlines Group has a beta of 3.91, suggesting that its share price is 291% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Corporacion America Airports has a beta of 0.81, suggesting that its share price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares LATAM Airlines Group and Corporacion America Airports”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
LATAM Airlines Group	$12.83 billion	1.29	$976.97 million	$4.19	13.09
Corporacion America Airports	$1.84 billion	2.26	$282.67 million	$1.10	23.17

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for LATAM Airlines Group and Corporacion America Airports, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
LATAM Airlines Group	0	2	2	0	2.50
Corporacion America Airports	1	0	5	0	2.67

LATAM Airlines Group currently has a consensus price target of $59.25, indicating a potential upside of 8.00%. Corporacion America Airports has a consensus price target of $24.40, indicating a potential downside of 4.28%. Given LATAM Airlines Group’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe LATAM Airlines Group is more favorable than Corporacion America Airports.

Summary

LATAM Airlines Group beats Corporacion America Airports on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About LATAM Airlines Group

LATAM Airlines Group S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides passenger and cargo air transportation services in Peru, Argentina, the United States, Europe, Colombia, Brazil, Ecuador, Chile, the Asia Pacific, and rest of Latin America. The company operates in two segments, Air Transportation; and Multiplus Coalition and Loyalty Program. It provides passenger transport services to approximately 140 destinations in 25 countries with a fleet of 322 aircrafts, well as operates loyalty programs. The company was formerly known as LAN Airlines S.A. and changed its name to LATAM Airlines Group S.A. in June 2012. LATAM Airlines Group S.A. was founded in 1929 and is based in Santiago, Chile.

About Corporacion America Airports

Corporación América Airports S.A., through its subsidiaries, acquires, develops, and operates airport concessions. It operates 52 airports in Latin America, Europe, and Eurasia. The company was formerly known as A.C.I. Airports International S.à r.l. and changed its name to Corporación América Airports S.A. in September 2017. The company was founded in 1998 and is based in Luxembourg City, Luxembourg. Corporación América Airports S.A. is a subsidiary of A.C.I. Airports S.à r.l.