Financial Contrast: Zuoan Fashion (OTCMKTS:ZAHLY) versus Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA)

Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA) and Zuoan Fashion (OTCMKTS:ZAHLY) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, dividends, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Vera Bradley and Zuoan Fashion’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vera Bradley	-7.02%	-6.66%	-3.65%
Zuoan Fashion	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Vera Bradley and Zuoan Fashion”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vera Bradley	$269.65 million	0.34	-$47.84 million	($0.69)	-4.61
Zuoan Fashion	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Zuoan Fashion has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Vera Bradley.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

59.9% of Vera Bradley shares are held by institutional investors. 14.3% of Vera Bradley shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Vera Bradley and Zuoan Fashion, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vera Bradley	1	1	0	0	1.50
Zuoan Fashion	0	0	0	0	0.00

Given Zuoan Fashion’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Zuoan Fashion is more favorable than Vera Bradley.

About Vera Bradley

Vera Bradley, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells women’s handbags, luggage and travel items, fashion and home accessories, and gifts. It operates through three segments: Vera Bradley Direct, Vera Bradley Indirect, and Pura Vida. The company offers bag products, such as totes, crossbodies, satchels, clutches, backpacks, baby bags, and lunch bags; accessories, including ID holders, lanyards, wallets, wristlets, eyewear, scarves, hair accessories, and various technology accessories; bracelets, rings, and necklaces under Pura Vida brand name; and travel products consist of rolling luggage, cosmetics, and travel and packing accessories, as well as travel bags comprising duffel and weekend bags. It also provides home products that include throw blankets, beach towels, and comforters, as well as items, such as mugs and tumblers; apparel/footwear comprising sleepwear, footwear, outerwear, tees and hoodies, and socks; and stationery and merchandising products, as well as freight, licensing, and gift card breakage services. The company sells its Vera Bradley branded products through its full-line and outlet stores in the United States; verabradley.com, an online outlet site; its annual outlet sale in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It sells its Pura Vida branded products through wholesale retailers and Pura Vida websites, including www.puravidabracelets.com, www.puravidabracelets.eu, and www.puravidabracelets.ca; and Vera Bradley Indirect branded products to specialty retail locations, department stores, national accounts, third party e-commerce sites, third-party inventory liquidators, and through licensing agreements. Vera Bradley, Inc. was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Roanoke, Indiana.

About Zuoan Fashion

Zuoan Fashion Limited is a casual menswear company. The Company’s products are designed in-house and sold under the Zuoan brand. The Company offers a range of products, including men’s casual apparel, footwear and lifestyle accessories, primarily targeting urban males between the ages of 20 and 40. The Company’s apparel products include blazers, jackets, sweaters, shirts, T-shirts, leather jackets, down jackets, pants and jeans. The Company’s accessories include shoes, bags, ties, belts, socks and scarves. The Company sells its products through a distribution network covering 30 of China’s 32 provinces and centrally administered municipalities, as well as through its direct stores. The Company’s products are primarily sold to customers through retail stores operated by its distributors and their sub-distributors.