Comparing Loews (NYSE:L) and International General Insurance (NASDAQ:IGIC)

International General Insurance (NASDAQ:IGIC) and Loews (NYSE:L) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Risk and Volatility

International General Insurance has a beta of 0.16, meaning that its stock price is 84% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Loews has a beta of 0.61, meaning that its stock price is 39% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

54.2% of International General Insurance shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 58.3% of Loews shares are owned by institutional investors. 20.1% of International General Insurance shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 18.7% of Loews shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares International General Insurance and Loews”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
International General Insurance	$539.00 million	2.11	$135.15 million	$2.76	9.22
Loews	$17.51 billion	1.26	$1.41 billion	$6.90	15.42

Loews has higher revenue and earnings than International General Insurance. International General Insurance is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Loews, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for International General Insurance and Loews, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
International General Insurance	0	0	3	0	3.00
Loews	0	0	0	1	4.00

International General Insurance currently has a consensus target price of $30.00, indicating a potential upside of 17.83%. Given International General Insurance’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe International General Insurance is more favorable than Loews.

Profitability

This table compares International General Insurance and Loews’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
International General Insurance	23.76%	18.36%	5.82%
Loews	7.95%	7.89%	1.73%

Dividends

International General Insurance pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Loews pays an annual dividend of $0.25 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. International General Insurance pays out 7.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Loews pays out 3.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. International General Insurance has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years. International General Insurance is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

About International General Insurance

International General Insurance Holdings Ltd. engages in the provision of specialty insurance and reinsurance solutions worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Specialty Long-tail, Specialty Short-tail, and Reinsurance. It is involved in underwriting a portfolio of specialty risks, including energy, property, construction and engineering, ports and terminals, general aviation, political violence, professional lines, financial institutions, motor, marine liability, contingency, marine, treaty, and casualty insurance and reinsurance. The company was founded in 2001 and is based in Amman, Jordan.

About Loews

Loews Corporation provides commercial property and casualty insurance in the United States and internationally. The company offers specialty insurance products, such as management and professional liability, and other coverage products; surety and fidelity bonds; property insurance products that include standard and excess property, marine and boiler, and machinery coverages; and casualty insurance products, such as workers' compensation, general and product liability, and commercial auto, surplus, and umbrella coverages. It also provides loss-sensitive insurance programs; and warranty, risk management, information, and claims administration services. The company markets its insurance products and services through independent agents, brokers, and managing general underwriters. In addition, the company is involved in the transportation and storage of natural gas and natural gas liquids, and hydrocarbons through natural gas pipelines covering approximately 13,455 miles of interconnected pipelines; 855 miles of NGL pipelines in Louisiana and Texas; 14 underground storage fields with an aggregate gas capacity of approximately 199.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas; and eleven salt dome caverns and related brine infrastructure for providing brine supply services. Further, the company operates a chain of 25 hotels; and develops, manufactures, and markets a range of extrusion blow-molded and injection molded plastic containers for customers in the pharmaceutical, dairy, household chemicals, food/nutraceuticals, industrial/specialty chemicals, and water and beverage/juice industries, as well as manufactures commodity and differentiated plastic resins from recycled plastic materials. Loews Corporation was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in New York, New York.