Reviewing E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) & Saga Communications (NASDAQ:SGA)

E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) and Saga Communications (NASDAQ:SGA) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends, risk and profitability.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

67.8% of E.W. Scripps shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 74.3% of Saga Communications shares are held by institutional investors. 3.6% of E.W. Scripps shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 22.4% of Saga Communications shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for E.W. Scripps and Saga Communications, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
E.W. Scripps	1	1	1	0	2.00
Saga Communications	1	1	0	0	1.50

E.W. Scripps currently has a consensus price target of $5.95, suggesting a potential upside of 70.49%. Given E.W. Scripps’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe E.W. Scripps is more favorable than Saga Communications.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares E.W. Scripps and Saga Communications”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
E.W. Scripps	$2.51 billion	0.12	$87.60 million	($0.44)	-7.93
Saga Communications	$110.29 million	0.66	$3.46 million	$0.05	226.00

E.W. Scripps has higher revenue and earnings than Saga Communications. E.W. Scripps is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Saga Communications, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

E.W. Scripps has a beta of 0.62, suggesting that its stock price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Saga Communications has a beta of -0.01, suggesting that its stock price is 101% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares E.W. Scripps and Saga Communications’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
E.W. Scripps	0.99%	9.82%	1.68%
Saga Communications	0.27%	0.18%	0.13%

Summary

E.W. Scripps beats Saga Communications on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About E.W. Scripps

The E.W. Scripps Company, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a media enterprise through a portfolio of local television stations, national news, and entertainment networks in the United States. It operates through Local Media, Scripps Networks, and Other segments. The Local Media segment operates broadcast television stations, which produce news, information, sports, and entertainment content, as well as its related digital operations; runs network, syndicated, and original programming, and local sporting events; and provides core and political advertising services. The Scripps Networks segment offers national television networks through free over-the-air broadcast, cable/satellite, connected TV, and digital distribution. This segment also provides Scripp News, a national news network, which provides politics, entertainment, science, and technology news; Court TV, which showcases live trials; entertainment brands, such as Bounce, Defy TV, Grit, ION Mystery, and Laff; and ION, a national network of broadcast stations and broadcast television spectrum, which distributes programming through Federal Communications Commission-licensed television stations, as well as affiliated TV stations through over-the-air broadcast and pay TV platforms. In addition, it provides content and services through digital platforms, including the Internet, smartphones, and tablets; Nuvyyo, which offers consumers DVR product solutions to watch and record free over-the-air HDTV on connected devices; and Scripps National Spelling Bee, which shows educational programs. The company serves audiences and businesses through cable and satellite service providers. The E.W. Scripps Company was founded in 1878 and is headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio.

About Saga Communications

Saga Communications, Inc., a media company, engages in acquiring, developing, and operating broadcast properties in the United States. The company's radio stations employ various programming formats, including classic hits, country, classic country, hot/soft/urban adult contemporary, oldies, classic rock, rock, and news/talk. It owns and operates FM and AM radio stations, and metro signals serving various markets. Saga Communications, Inc. was incorporated in 1986 and is headquartered in Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan.