Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) vs. Universal Entertainment (OTCMKTS:UETMF) Head-To-Head Contrast

Boyd Gaming (NYSE:BYD) and Universal Entertainment (OTCMKTS:UETMF) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, institutional ownership and valuation.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Boyd Gaming and Universal Entertainment, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Boyd Gaming	0	10	5	0	2.33
Universal Entertainment	0	0	0	0	0.00

Boyd Gaming currently has a consensus price target of $89.50, suggesting a potential upside of 3.28%. Given Boyd Gaming’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Boyd Gaming is more favorable than Universal Entertainment.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

76.8% of Boyd Gaming shares are held by institutional investors. 22.0% of Boyd Gaming shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

Boyd Gaming has a beta of 1.24, indicating that its stock price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Universal Entertainment has a beta of 0.49, indicating that its stock price is 51% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Boyd Gaming and Universal Entertainment”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Boyd Gaming	$3.93 billion	1.72	$577.95 million	$22.88	3.79
Universal Entertainment	$835.53 million	0.61	-$102.75 million	($0.59)	-11.11

Boyd Gaming has higher revenue and earnings than Universal Entertainment. Universal Entertainment is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Boyd Gaming, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Boyd Gaming and Universal Entertainment’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Boyd Gaming	46.02%	34.63%	9.34%
Universal Entertainment	-5.30%	14.42%	8.49%

Summary

Boyd Gaming beats Universal Entertainment on 14 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Boyd Gaming

Boyd Gaming Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a multi-jurisdictional gaming company in Nevada, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Ohio, and Pennsylvania. The company operates through Las Vegas Locals, Downtown Las Vegas, Midwest & South, and Online segments. It also engages in owning and operating a travel agency. Boyd Gaming Corporation was founded in 1975 and is headquartered in Las Vegas, Nevada.

About Universal Entertainment

Universal Entertainment Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures, develops, and sells pachislot and pachinko machines in Japan, Philippines, and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Amusement Equipment Business, and Integrated Resort Business. The company also develops and provides Falcon X, a peripheral system; Hot Stadium, a digital signage system; Universal Kingdom, a membership website for Android; and Slots Street, a social casino game; as well as operates OKADA MANILA, a casino resort in the Philippines. In addition, it operates casino, hotel, food and beverage, retail and leasing, entertainment, and real estate development businesses. The company was formerly known as Aruze Corp. and changed its name to Universal Entertainment Corporation in November 2009. Universal Entertainment Corporation was founded in 1969 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.