Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) versus Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) Head to Head Analysis

Universal Technical Institute (NYSE:UTI) and Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and valuation.

Dividends

Universal Technical Institute pays an annual dividend of $0.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.4%. Carriage Services pays an annual dividend of $0.45 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Universal Technical Institute pays out 12.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Carriage Services pays out 16.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Universal Technical Institute and Carriage Services, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Universal Technical Institute	0	2	4	0	2.67
Carriage Services	1	1	3	0	2.40

Universal Technical Institute currently has a consensus price target of $42.83, indicating a potential upside of 111.04%. Carriage Services has a consensus price target of $51.00, indicating a potential upside of 55.74%. Given Universal Technical Institute’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Universal Technical Institute is more favorable than Carriage Services.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

75.7% of Universal Technical Institute shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 66.5% of Carriage Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 9.8% of Universal Technical Institute shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of Carriage Services shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Universal Technical Institute and Carriage Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Universal Technical Institute	3.88%	10.18%	4.02%
Carriage Services	10.69%	19.23%	3.71%

Risk and Volatility

Universal Technical Institute has a beta of 1.17, indicating that its share price is 17% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Carriage Services has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Universal Technical Institute and Carriage Services”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Universal Technical Institute	$883.60 million	1.26	$63.02 million	$0.62	32.74
Carriage Services	$417.44 million	1.24	$51.51 million	$2.79	11.74

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

Summary

Universal Technical Institute beats Carriage Services on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Universal Technical Institute

Universal Technical Institute, Inc. provides transportation, skilled trades, and healthcare education programs in the United States. The company operates in two segments, UTI and Concorde. It offers certificate, diploma, or degree programs under various brands, such as Universal Technical Institute, Motorcycle Mechanics Institute, Marine Mechanics Institute, NASCAR Technical Institute, and MIAT College of Technology. The company also provides manufacturer specific advanced training programs, including student paid electives at its campuses; and manufacturer or dealer sponsored training at various campuses and dedicated training centers. It serves students, partners, and communities by providing education and support services in various fields. Universal Technical Institute, Inc. was founded in 1965 and is headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona.

About Carriage Services

Carriage Services, Inc. provides funeral and cemetery services, and merchandise in the United States. It operates in two segments, Funeral Home Operations and Cemetery Operations. The Funeral Home Operations segment provides consultation services; funeral home facilities for visitation and memorial services; transportation services; removal and preparation of remains; sale of caskets and urns; cremation services; and related funeral merchandise. The Cemetery Operations segment sells interment rights for grave sites, lawn crypts, mausoleum spaces, and niches; related cemetery merchandise, including memorial markers, outer burial containers, and monuments; and interments, inurnments, and installation of cemetery merchandise services. Carriage Services, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is based in Houston, Texas.