Head to Head Contrast: Mail Ru Group (OTCMKTS:MLRYY) vs. Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK)

Upwork (NASDAQ:UPWK) and Mail Ru Group (OTCMKTS:MLRYY) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, risk and dividends.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Upwork and Mail Ru Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Upwork	$787.78 million	2.27	$115.43 million	$0.84	16.35
Mail Ru Group	$1.59 billion	0.14	-$1.03 billion	($0.98)	-0.92

Upwork has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Mail Ru Group. Mail Ru Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Upwork, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Upwork and Mail Ru Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Upwork	14.65%	18.76%	9.03%
Mail Ru Group	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

77.7% of Upwork shares are held by institutional investors. 7.5% of Upwork shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Upwork and Mail Ru Group, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Upwork	0	6	7	0	2.54
Mail Ru Group	0	0	0	0	0.00

Upwork currently has a consensus price target of $22.60, indicating a potential upside of 64.60%. Given Upwork’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Upwork is more favorable than Mail Ru Group.

Risk and Volatility

Upwork has a beta of 1.06, meaning that its share price is 6% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Mail Ru Group has a beta of 1.08, meaning that its share price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Upwork beats Mail Ru Group on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Upwork

Upwork Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates a work marketplace that connects businesses with various independent professionals and agencies in the United States, India, the Philippines, and internationally. The company’s work marketplace provides access to talent with various skills across a range of categories, including administrative support, sales and marketing, design and creative, and customer service, as well as web, mobile, and software development. Its work marketplace also enables clients to streamline workflows, such as talent sourcing, outreach, and contracting. The company’s work marketplace offers access to various functionalities for remote engagements with talent, including communication and collaboration, ability to receive talent invoices through their work marketplace, and payment protection. Its marketplace offerings include Upwork Payroll and Upwork Enterprise, as well as managed and escrow services. The company was formerly known as Elance-oDesk, Inc. and changed its name to Upwork Inc. in May 2015. Upwork Inc. was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

About Mail Ru Group

VK International Public Joint-Stock Company operates as a technology company in Russia and internationally. It operates through Social Platforms and Media Content, EdTech, Technologies for Business, and Ecosystem Services and Other Business Lines segments. The company’s projects include social networks, games, education, goods and services, productivity, devices, media and entertainment, app stores, messengers, social services, and ecosystem services. It also provides marketing and advertising, communications and productivity, cloud data, analytics, authorization and registration, finances, HR, and social projects solutions for businesses; cloud platforms and data management, corporate communication services, tax monitoring platform, and other corporate software solutions; and business digitizing solutions, which range from online promotion to cloud services. It enables users to communicate, play, listen to music, watch, and create videos, and receive professional training and skills. The company was formerly known as VK Company Limited and changed its name to VK International Public Joint-Stock Company in August 2023. VK International Public Joint-Stock Company was founded in 1998 and is based in Kaliningrad, Russia.