Head to Head Contrast: USA Today (NYSE:TDAY) versus X3 (NASDAQ:XTKG)

USA Today (NYSE:TDAY) and X3 (NASDAQ:XTKG) are both small-cap business services companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, risk and analyst recommendations.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

76.7% of USA Today shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 1.9% of X3 shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.2% of USA Today shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 23.9% of X3 shares are owned by company 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.

Profitability

This table compares USA Today and X3’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
USA Today	0.08%	5.68%	0.54%
X3	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares USA Today and X3″s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
USA Today	$2.30 billion	0.45	$1.75 million	($0.11)	-64.27
X3	$11.61 million	0.11	-$76.24 million	N/A	N/A

USA Today has higher revenue and earnings than X3.

Volatility and Risk

USA Today has a beta of 1.44, meaning that its share price is 44% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, X3 has a beta of 1.84, meaning that its share price is 84% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for USA Today and X3, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
USA Today	0	2	2	0	2.50
X3	1	0	0	0	1.00

USA Today presently has a consensus target price of $7.70, indicating a potential upside of 8.91%. Given USA Today’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe USA Today is more favorable than X3.

Summary

USA Today beats X3 on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About USA Today

Gannett Co Inc. invests in, owns, and operates local media assets in the United States. The company’s principal products include 125 daily newspapers with total paid circulation of approximately 1.4 million; 314 weekly newspapers with total paid circulation of approximately 315,000 and total free circulation of approximately 1.9 million; 124 shoppers with total circulation of approximately 3.0 million; and 538 locally-focused Websites, including Internet and mobile devices with approximately 224 million page views per month. Its principal products also comprise 2 yellow page directories with a total distribution of approximately 230,000 that cover a population of approximately 411,000 people; 68 business publications; and Propel digital marketing and business services. In addition, the company produces niche publications that address specific local market interests, such as recreation, sports, healthcare, and real estate. Further, it provides print and online products that offer local market news and information on various topics comprising local news and politics, community and regional events, youth sports, opinion and editorial pages, local schools, obituaries, weddings, and police reports, as well as print and digital advertising products, as well as commercial printing and regional business-oriented publications services. The company reaches approximately 20 million people per week; and serves approximately 220,000 business customers. New Media Investment Group Inc. was founded in 1997 and is based in New York, New York.

About X3

X3 Holdings Co Ltd. provides technology solutions and services worldwide. The company offers Global Trade Platform, a digital platform for trading partners, service providers, and government authorities. It also engages in bitcoin cryptomining operations, renewable energy projects, and agriculture technologies and trading. The company was formerly known as Powerbridge Technologies Co., Ltd. and changed its name to X3 Holdings Co Ltd. in January 2024. X3 Holdings Co Ltd. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Singapore.