Comparing FTI Consulting (NYSE:FCN) and TriNet Group (NYSE:TNET)

TriNet Group (NYSE:TNET) and FTI Consulting (NYSE:FCN) are both mid-cap industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, risk and profitability.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

96.8% of TriNet Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 99.4% of FTI Consulting shares are owned by institutional investors. 40.0% of TriNet Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.8% of FTI Consulting shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares TriNet Group and FTI Consulting”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
TriNet Group	$5.01 billion	0.65	$155.00 million	$3.74	18.86
FTI Consulting	$3.79 billion	1.08	$270.87 million	$8.27	17.94

FTI Consulting has lower revenue, but higher earnings than TriNet Group. FTI Consulting is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than TriNet Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares TriNet Group and FTI Consulting’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
TriNet Group	3.58%	227.28%	6.04%
FTI Consulting	6.44%	15.91%	7.35%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for TriNet Group and FTI Consulting, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
TriNet Group	1	5	1	0	2.00
FTI Consulting	1	1	0	0	1.50

TriNet Group currently has a consensus target price of $56.80, suggesting a potential downside of 19.46%. FTI Consulting has a consensus target price of $174.50, suggesting a potential upside of 17.58%. Given FTI Consulting’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe FTI Consulting is more favorable than TriNet Group.

Risk & Volatility

TriNet Group has a beta of 0.99, meaning that its stock price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, FTI Consulting has a beta of -0.06, meaning that its stock price is 106% less volatile than the S&P 500.

About TriNet Group

TriNet Group, Inc. provides comprehensive and flexible human capital management services for small and medium size businesses in the United States. The company offers multi-state payroll processing and tax administration; employee benefits programs, including health insurance and retirement plans; workers compensation insurance and claims management; employment and benefits law compliance; and other HR related services. It also provides technology platform, an online and mobile tool that allows users to store, view, and manager HR information and administer various HR transactions, such as payroll processing, tax administration and credits, employee onboarding and termination, employee performance, time and attendance, compensation reporting, expense management, and benefits enrollment and administration, as well as incorporated workforce analytics and allows professional employer organization clients to generate HR data, payroll, compensation, and other custom reports. The company serves clients in various industries, including technology, professional services, financial services, life sciences, and not-for-profit. It sells its solutions through its direct sales organization. TriNet Group, Inc. was incorporated in 1988 and is headquartered in Dublin, California.

About FTI Consulting

FTI Consulting, Inc. provides business advisory services to manage change, mitigate risk, and resolve disputes worldwide. The company operates through Corporate Finance & Restructuring, Forensic and Litigation Consulting, Economic Consulting, Technology, and Strategic Communications segments. The Corporate Finance & Restructuring segment provides business transformation and strategy, transactions, and turnaround and restructuring services. The Forensic and Litigation Consulting segment offers construction and environmental solutions, data and analytics, disputes, health solutions, and risk and investigation services. The Economic Consulting segment provides antitrust and competition economics, financial economics, and international arbitration services. The Technology segment offers corporate legal department consulting; e-discovery and expertise; and information governance, privacy, and security services. The Strategic Communications segment provides corporate reputation, financial communications, and public affairs services. It serves aerospace and defense, airlines and aviation, blockchain and digital assets, chemicals, construction and environmental solutions, energy, financial services, food and agriculture, healthcare and life sciences, hospitality, gaming and leisure, automotive and industrial, insurance, mining, private equity, power and renewable, public sector and government contracts, real estate, retail and consumer products, telecom, media and technology, and transportation and logistics sectors. FTI Consulting, Inc. was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.