Reviewing PetMed Express (NASDAQ:PETS) and Lulu’s Fashion Lounge (NASDAQ:LVLU)

Lulu’s Fashion Lounge (NASDAQ:LVLU) and PetMed Express (NASDAQ:PETS) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Lulu’s Fashion Lounge and PetMed Express’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lulu’s Fashion Lounge	-3.17%	-946.15%	-8.73%
PetMed Express	-17.34%	-91.69%	-35.15%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Lulu’s Fashion Lounge and PetMed Express, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lulu’s Fashion Lounge	1	0	0	0	1.00
PetMed Express	1	1	0	0	1.50

Institutional & Insider Ownership

73.8% of Lulu’s Fashion Lounge shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.3% of PetMed Express shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.8% of Lulu’s Fashion Lounge shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.3% of PetMed Express shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Lulu’s Fashion Lounge has a beta of 0.29, meaning that its stock price is 71% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PetMed Express has a beta of 0.76, meaning that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Lulu’s Fashion Lounge and PetMed Express”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lulu’s Fashion Lounge	$261.95 million	0.14	-$13.71 million	($2.94)	-4.48
PetMed Express	$168.86 million	0.25	-$57.29 million	($1.38)	-1.39

Lulu’s Fashion Lounge has higher revenue and earnings than PetMed Express. Lulu’s Fashion Lounge is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than PetMed Express, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

About Lulu’s Fashion Lounge

Lulu’s Fashion Lounge Holdings, Inc. engages in providing an online website for clothing. It offers retailing of women’s clothing, shoes, and accessories. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Chico, CA.

About PetMed Express

PetMed Express, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a pet pharmacy in the United States. The company markets prescription and non-prescription pet medications, health products, and other supplies for dogs, cats, and horses. It offers non-prescription medications and supplies, such as flea and tick control products, bone and joint care products, vitamins, treats, nutritional supplements, hygiene products, and household pet supplies; and prescription medications, including heartworm preventatives, flea and tick preventatives, arthritis, dermatitis, thyroid, diabetes, pain medications, heart/blood pressure, and other specialty medications, as well as generic substitutes. The company also sells food, beds, crates, stairs, and other pet supplies. It sells its products through its Internet website; mobile app; customer support center; and direct mail/print, which includes brochures and postcards. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Delray Beach, Florida.