Contrasting E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) & PubMatic (NASDAQ:PUBM)

PubMatic (NASDAQ:PUBM) and E.W. Scripps (NASDAQ:SSP) are both small-cap communication services companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, valuation, profitability, risk and institutional ownership.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares PubMatic and E.W. Scripps”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PubMatic	$282.93 million	2.97	-$14.46 million	($0.30)	-61.40
E.W. Scripps	$2.15 billion	0.12	-$100.88 million	($13.94)	-0.20

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

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PubMatic	-4.66%	-5.41%	-1.99%
E.W. Scripps	-58.02%	-4.58%	-0.53%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

64.3% of PubMatic shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 67.8% of E.W. Scripps shares are held by institutional investors. 27.8% of PubMatic shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.2% of E.W. Scripps shares are held 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.

Volatility and Risk

PubMatic has a beta of 1.56, meaning that its stock price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, E.W. Scripps has a beta of 0.71, meaning that its stock price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for PubMatic and E.W. Scripps, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PubMatic	1	1	11	0	2.77
E.W. Scripps	1	3	1	0	2.00

PubMatic presently has a consensus target price of $19.73, indicating a potential upside of 7.10%. E.W. Scripps has a consensus target price of $5.90, indicating a potential upside of 115.33%. Given E.W. Scripps’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe E.W. Scripps is more favorable than PubMatic.

Summary

PubMatic beats E.W. Scripps on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PubMatic

PubMatic, Inc., a technology company, engages in the provision of a cloud infrastructure platform that enables real-time programmatic advertising transactions for digital content creators, advertisers, agencies, agency trading desks, and demand side platforms worldwide. Its PubMatic SSP, a sell-side platform, used for the purchase and sale of digital advertising inventory for publishers and buyers. The company also provides solutions, including OpenWrap, a header bidding solution; Openwrap OTT, a prebid-powered unified bidding solution; Openwrap SDK, an enterprise-grade management tools and analytics; Connect, a solution that provides additional data and insights to publishers and buyers; Activate, which allows buyers to execute direct deals on its platform across publisher inventory; Convert, a commerce media solution; and Identity Hub, an ID management tool for publishers that leverages specialized technology?infrastructure?to simplify the complex alternative identifier marketplace. Its platform supports an array of ad formats and digital device types, including mobile app, mobile web, desktop, display, video, over-the-top (OTT), connected television, and media. The company was incorporated in 2006 and is based in Redwood City, California.

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.