Head-To-Head Contrast: Internet Initiative Japan (OTCMKTS:IIJIY) and Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG)

Zillow Group (NASDAQ:ZG) and Internet Initiative Japan (OTCMKTS:IIJIY) are both mid-cap communication services companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, dividends, profitability, risk, institutional ownership and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Zillow Group and Internet Initiative Japan, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Zillow Group	3	11	9	0	2.26
Internet Initiative Japan	0	1	0	0	2.00

Zillow Group presently has a consensus target price of $47.67, indicating a potential upside of 58.31%. Given Zillow Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Zillow Group is more favorable than Internet Initiative Japan.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Zillow Group and Internet Initiative Japan”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Zillow Group	$2.58 billion	2.62	$23.00 million	($0.52)	-57.90
Internet Initiative Japan	$2.29 billion	2.07	$159.64 million	$1.79	28.96

Internet Initiative Japan has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Zillow Group. Zillow Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Internet Initiative Japan, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Zillow Group has a beta of 1.95, suggesting that its stock price is 95% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Internet Initiative Japan has a beta of 1.19, suggesting that its stock price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Zillow Group and Internet Initiative Japan’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Zillow Group	-3.95%	3.23%	2.67%
Internet Initiative Japan	6.34%	15.49%	7.03%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

20.3% of Zillow Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 29.9% of Zillow Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 6.7% of Internet Initiative Japan shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Zillow Group beats Internet Initiative Japan on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Zillow Group

Zillow Group, Inc. operates a digital real estate marketplace focused primarily on the United States. Its websites and mobile apps help consumers find homes for sale and rent, explore neighborhood information, and research home values. The company’s brands include Zillow, Trulia, StreetEasy and HotPads. Zillow Group also provides services for real estate professionals, including advertising and customer-management tools, and offers mortgage services through Zillow Home Loans. Zillow launched in 2006, founded by Rich Barton and Lloyd Frink, and grew into a parent company with multiple real estate brands and services.

About Internet Initiative Japan

Internet Initiative Japan (IIJ) is a Japanese information technology and telecommunications company founded in 1992. It was among the first commercial internet service providers in Japan and has expanded into a range of network and technology services. The company provides internet connectivity, wide-area networking, cloud computing, cybersecurity, and mobile services. It also offers systems integration and IT outsourcing, helping businesses and public-sector organizations build and manage their technology infrastructure.