Analyzing NI (NASDAQ:NODK) and Primerica (NYSE:PRI)

NI (NASDAQ:NODK) and Primerica (NYSE:PRI) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares NI and Primerica”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
NI	$285.05 million	1.09	-$10.41 million	$0.38	40.16
Primerica	$3.29 billion	2.76	$751.23 million	$24.90	11.87

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

Volatility & Risk

NI has a beta of 0.35, indicating that its share price is 65% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Primerica has a beta of 0.86, indicating that its share price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares NI and Primerica’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
NI	2.93%	3.18%	1.50%
Primerica	23.20%	32.45%	5.35%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for NI and Primerica, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
NI	1	0	0	0	1.00
Primerica	0	6	3	0	2.33

Primerica has a consensus target price of $315.57, indicating a potential upside of 6.75%. Given Primerica’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Primerica is more favorable than NI.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

21.9% of NI shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 90.9% of Primerica shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of NI shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of Primerica shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Primerica beats NI on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About NI

NI Holdings, Inc. underwrites property and casualty insurance products in the United States. Its products include private passenger auto, non-standard automobile, homeowners, farm owners, crop hail and multi-peril crop, and liability insurance policies. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Fargo, North Dakota. NI Holdings, Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Nodak Mutual Group, Inc.

About Primerica

Primerica, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides financial products and services to middle-income households in the United States and Canada. The company operates in four segments: Term Life Insurance; Investment and Savings Products; Senior Health; and Corporate and Other Distributed Products. The Term Life Insurance segment underwrites individual term life insurance products. The Investment and Savings Products segment provides mutual funds and various retirement plans, managed investments, variable and fixed annuities, and fixed indexed annuities. The Senior Health segment offers segregated funds; and medicare advantage and supplement plans. The Corporate and Other Distributed Products segment provides mortgage loans; prepaid legal services that assist subscribers with legal matters, such as drafting wills, living wills and powers of attorney, trial defense, and motor vehicle-related matters; ID theft defense services; auto and homeowners' insurance; home automation solutions; and insurance products, including supplemental and accidental death, and disability insurance. It distributes and sells its products through licensed sales representatives. Primerica, Inc. was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Duluth, Georgia.