Crocs (NASDAQ:CROX) & Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA) Critical Review

Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA) and Crocs (NASDAQ:CROX) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Vera Bradley and Crocs’ 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%
Crocs	14.64%	47.75%	15.20%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Vera Bradley and Crocs, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vera Bradley	1	1	0	0	1.50
Crocs	2	7	10	1	2.50

Crocs has a consensus target price of $139.10, indicating a potential upside of 24.78%. Given Crocs’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Crocs is more favorable than Vera Bradley.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

59.9% of Vera Bradley shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.4% of Crocs shares are held by institutional investors. 14.3% of Vera Bradley shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 3.1% of Crocs shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Vera Bradley and Crocs”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vera Bradley	$269.65 million	0.43	-$47.84 million	($0.69)	-5.93
Crocs	$4.04 billion	1.32	-$81.20 million	$11.57	9.64

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

Risk & Volatility

Vera Bradley has a beta of 1.59, meaning that its stock price is 59% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Crocs has a beta of 1.52, meaning that its stock price is 52% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Crocs beats Vera Bradley on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

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 Crocs

Crocs, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, markets, distributes, and sells casual lifestyle footwear and accessories for men, women, and children under Crocs and HEYDUDE Brand in the United States and internationally. The company offers various footwear products, including clogs, sandals, slides, flips, wedges, platforms, socks, boots, charms, flip flops, sneakers, and slippers. It sells its products through wholesalers, retail stores, e-commerce sites, third-party marketplaces, and kiosks/store-in-store locations. Crocs, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Broomfield, Colorado.