Comparing Swiss Re (OTCMKTS:SSREY) & Fidelity National Financial (NYSE:FNF)

Swiss Re (OTCMKTS:SSREY) and Fidelity National Financial (NYSE:FNF) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, profitability, risk, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Risk & Volatility

Swiss Re has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its share price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fidelity National Financial has a beta of 1, indicating that its share price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

81.2% of Fidelity National Financial shares are held by institutional investors. 5.5% of Fidelity National Financial shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Swiss Re and Fidelity National Financial, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Swiss Re	4	4	0	1	1.78
Fidelity National Financial	0	1	3	0	2.75

Fidelity National Financial has a consensus price target of $68.25, indicating a potential upside of 27.84%. Given Fidelity National Financial’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Fidelity National Financial is more favorable than Swiss Re.

Dividends

Swiss Re pays an annual dividend of $1.15 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Fidelity National Financial pays an annual dividend of $2.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Fidelity National Financial pays out 50.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Fidelity National Financial has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Fidelity National Financial is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Swiss Re and Fidelity National Financial”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Swiss Re	$45.60 billion	1.03	$3.24 billion	N/A	N/A
Fidelity National Financial	$13.68 billion	1.10	$1.27 billion	$4.15	12.86

Swiss Re has higher revenue and earnings than Fidelity National Financial.

Profitability

This table compares Swiss Re and Fidelity National Financial’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Swiss Re	N/A	N/A	N/A
Fidelity National Financial	8.34%	15.06%	1.33%

Summary

Fidelity National Financial beats Swiss Re on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Swiss Re

Swiss Re AG, together with its subsidiaries, provides wholesale reinsurance, insurance, other insurance-based forms of risk transfer, and other insurance-related services worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Property & Casualty Reinsurance, Life & Health Reinsurance, and Corporate Solutions. The Property & Casualty Reinsurance segment underwrites property reinsurance, including property, credit and surety, engineering, aviation, marine, agriculture, retakaful, and facultative reinsurance solutions; and casualty reinsurance, such as liability, motor, worker's compensation, personal accident, management and professional liability, cyber, and facultative reinsurance solutions. The Life & Health Reinsurance segment underwrites life and health insurance products. The Corporate Solutions segment offers standard risk transfer covers and multi-line programs to customized solutions. It serves stock and mutual insurance companies, public sector and governmental entities, mid-sized and large corporations, and individuals. The company was founded in 1863 and is headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland.

About Fidelity National Financial

Fidelity National Financial, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides various insurance products in the United States. The company operates through Title, F&G, and Corporate and Other segments. It offers title insurance, escrow, and other title related services, including trust activities, trustee sales guarantees, recordings and reconveyances, and home warranty products. The company also provides technology and transaction services to the real estate and mortgage industries; and mortgage transaction services, including title-related services and facilitation of production and management of mortgage loans. In addition, it offers annuity and life insurance products, such as deferred and immediate annuities, as well as indexed universal life insurance products; and funding agreements and pension risk transfer (PRT) solutions. Further, the company engages in the real estate brokerage business. Fidelity National Financial, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.