Cohen & Steers (NYSE:CNS) and Westwood Holdings Group (NYSE:WHG) Head-To-Head Comparison

Westwood Holdings Group (NYSE:WHG) and Cohen & Steers (NYSE:CNS) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and dividends.

Dividends

Westwood Holdings Group pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Cohen & Steers pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Westwood Holdings Group pays out 74.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Cohen & Steers pays out 82.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Cohen & Steers has increased its dividend for 16 consecutive years. Cohen & Steers is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Volatility & Risk

Westwood Holdings Group has a beta of 0.57, indicating that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cohen & Steers has a beta of 1.19, indicating that its stock price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Westwood Holdings Group and Cohen & Steers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Westwood Holdings Group	7.00%	7.20%	5.83%
Cohen & Steers	28.16%	26.90%	19.14%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Westwood Holdings Group and Cohen & Steers”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Westwood Holdings Group	$97.76 million	1.82	$7.06 million	$0.81	23.08
Cohen & Steers	$556.12 million	6.83	$153.22 million	$3.26	22.64

Cohen & Steers has higher revenue and earnings than Westwood Holdings Group. Cohen & Steers is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Westwood Holdings Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

56.6% of Westwood Holdings Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 51.5% of Cohen & Steers shares are held by institutional investors. 17.4% of Westwood Holdings Group shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 45.4% of Cohen & Steers shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Westwood Holdings Group and Cohen & Steers, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Westwood Holdings Group	0	0	1	0	3.00
Cohen & Steers	1	1	1	0	2.00

Cohen & Steers has a consensus price target of $88.00, suggesting a potential upside of 19.24%. Given Cohen & Steers’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Cohen & Steers is more favorable than Westwood Holdings Group.

Summary

Cohen & Steers beats Westwood Holdings Group on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Westwood Holdings Group

Westwood Holdings Group, Inc. is an investment management firm headquartered in Dallas, Texas. Through its subsidiaries, the company provides investment advisory and asset management services to institutional investors, private wealth clients, family offices and investment vehicles. Westwood manages a range of investment strategies, including equity, income, multi-asset and alternative offerings. Its products and services are designed to address the needs of pension plans, endowments, foundations, corporations, high-net-worth individuals and other investors seeking professionally managed portfolios.

About Cohen & Steers

Cohen & Steers, Inc. is a global investment manager specializing in real assets and alternative income. The company manages investment strategies focused on publicly traded real estate securities, infrastructure, natural resources and preferred securities, along with related multi-asset strategies. Founded in 1986 by Martin Cohen and Robert Steers, the firm has built its business around specialized investment management. Its offerings include mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds and separately managed accounts for individual and institutional investors.