Reviewing Virgin Galactic (NYSE:SPCE) and Vertical Aerospace (NYSE:EVTL)

Vertical Aerospace (NYSE:EVTL) and Virgin Galactic (NYSE:SPCE) are both small-cap aerospace companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Vertical Aerospace and Virgin Galactic’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vertical Aerospace	N/A	N/A	-489.91%
Virgin Galactic	-17,615.71%	-108.00%	-32.35%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

81.2% of Vertical Aerospace shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 46.6% of Virgin Galactic shares are owned by institutional investors. 74.8% of Vertical Aerospace shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Virgin Galactic shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Vertical Aerospace has a beta of 1.22, suggesting that its share price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Virgin Galactic has a beta of 2.21, suggesting that its share price is 121% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Vertical Aerospace and Virgin Galactic, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vertical Aerospace	1	0	6	0	2.71
Virgin Galactic	2	3	1	0	1.83

Vertical Aerospace currently has a consensus price target of $11.80, indicating a potential upside of 166.67%. Virgin Galactic has a consensus price target of $4.20, indicating a potential upside of 70.39%. Given Vertical Aerospace’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Vertical Aerospace is more favorable than Virgin Galactic.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Vertical Aerospace and Virgin Galactic”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vertical Aerospace	N/A	N/A	-$998.35 million	($48.92)	-0.09
Virgin Galactic	$7.04 million	25.61	-$346.74 million	($7.47)	-0.33

Virgin Galactic has higher revenue and earnings than Vertical Aerospace. Virgin Galactic is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Vertical Aerospace, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Vertical Aerospace beats Virgin Galactic on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Vertical Aerospace

Vertical Aerospace Ltd., an aerospace and technology company, engages in designing, manufacturing, and selling zero operating emission electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft for use in the advanced air mobility in the United Kingdom. It offers VX4, an eVTOL aircraft. Vertical Aerospace Ltd. was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Bristol, the United Kingdom.

About Virgin Galactic

Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc., an aerospace and space travel company, focuses on the development, manufacture, and operation of spaceships and related technologies. The company engages in the design and development, manufacturing, ground and flight testing, spaceflight operation, and post-flight maintenance of spaceflight systems for private individuals, researchers, and government agencies. Virgin Galactic Holdings, Inc. is headquartered in Tustin, California.