Head to Head Analysis: Hagerty (NYSE:HGTY) and Heritage Insurance (NYSE:HRTG)

Hagerty (NYSE:HGTY) and Heritage Insurance (NYSE:HRTG) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Hagerty and Heritage Insurance’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Hagerty	5.11%	11.94%	3.61%
Heritage Insurance	23.76%	43.68%	8.84%

Risk & Volatility

Hagerty has a beta of 0.82, suggesting that its stock price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Heritage Insurance has a beta of 0.91, suggesting that its stock price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

20.5% of Hagerty shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 59.0% of Heritage Insurance shares are held by institutional investors. 16.7% of Hagerty shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 15.2% of Heritage Insurance 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.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Hagerty and Heritage Insurance”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Hagerty	$1.46 billion	2.39	$49.02 million	$0.20	50.69
Heritage Insurance	$847.33 million	0.75	$195.59 million	$6.52	3.20

Heritage Insurance has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Hagerty. Heritage Insurance is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hagerty, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Hagerty and Heritage Insurance, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Hagerty	0	5	4	0	2.44
Heritage Insurance	1	1	2	0	2.25

Hagerty presently has a consensus target price of $13.38, suggesting a potential upside of 31.94%. Heritage Insurance has a consensus target price of $36.00, suggesting a potential upside of 72.44%. Given Heritage Insurance’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Heritage Insurance is more favorable than Hagerty.

Summary

Heritage Insurance beats Hagerty on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Hagerty

Hagerty, Inc. provides insurance agency services worldwide. It offers motor vehicle and boat insurance products; and reinsurance products. The company provides Hagerty Media, which publishes contents through the Hagerty Drivers Club Magazine (HDC), video content, and social media channels; HDC that offers subscription based products and services, including HDC Magazine, automotive enthusiast events, proprietary vehicle valuation tools, emergency roadside services, and special vehicle-related discounts. In addition, it offers HVT, a valuation tool used by the customer to access current and historic pricing data of collector vehicle models. Further, the company offers Hagerty Garage + Social, a platform that provides clubhouses and car storage facilities. Hagerty, Inc. is headquartered in Traverse City, Michigan.

About Heritage Insurance

Heritage Insurance Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides personal and commercial residential insurance products. The company offers personal residential insurance in Alabama, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Mississippi, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Virginia; commercial residential insurance for properties in Florida, New Jersey, and New York; and licensed in the state of Pennsylvania, as well as personal residential and wind-only property insurance. It also provides restoration, emergency, and recovery services; property management, and reinsurance services; homeowners insurance products, including single-family, homeowners or duplex, and condominium owners; and dwelling fire insurance policies. In addition, the company provides personal line policies through a network of retail independent agents, wholesale agents, and a partnership with a direct agency, as well as distribute indirectly to retail locations through wholesale agency relationships. Further, it offers personal and commercial insurance policies through a network of independent agencies. The company was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Tampa, Florida.