Contrasting Nu Skin Enterprises (NYSE:NUS) & e.l.f. Beauty (NYSE:ELF)

e.l.f. Beauty (NYSE:ELF) and Nu Skin Enterprises (NYSE:NUS) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, profitability and earnings.

Risk & Volatility

e.l.f. Beauty has a beta of 1.61, suggesting that its stock price is 61% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Nu Skin Enterprises has a beta of 0.92, suggesting that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares e.l.f. Beauty and Nu Skin Enterprises’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
e.l.f. Beauty	3.38%	14.07%	6.81%
Nu Skin Enterprises	-15.73%	6.58%	3.63%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares e.l.f. Beauty and Nu Skin Enterprises”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
e.l.f. Beauty	$1.76 billion	3.74	$26.32 million	$1.00	111.61
Nu Skin Enterprises	$1.49 billion	0.15	$160.20 million	($4.47)	-1.01

Nu Skin Enterprises has lower revenue, but higher earnings than e.l.f. Beauty. Nu Skin Enterprises is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than e.l.f. Beauty, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

92.4% of e.l.f. Beauty shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 82.8% of Nu Skin Enterprises shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.5% of e.l.f. Beauty shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.8% of Nu Skin Enterprises shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for e.l.f. Beauty and Nu Skin Enterprises, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
e.l.f. Beauty	1	5	9	3	2.78
Nu Skin Enterprises	1	1	0	0	1.50

e.l.f. Beauty presently has a consensus target price of $115.81, suggesting a potential upside of 3.77%. Given e.l.f. Beauty’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe e.l.f. Beauty is more favorable than Nu Skin Enterprises.

Summary

e.l.f. Beauty beats Nu Skin Enterprises on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About e.l.f. Beauty

e.l.f. Beauty, Inc. is a holding company, which engages in the provision of inclusive, accessible, clean, vegan and cruelty free cosmetics and skin care products. The company focuses on the e-commerce, national retailers and international business channels. Its brands include elf, elf skin, WELL People and KEYS soulcare. The company was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Oakland, CA.

About Nu Skin Enterprises

Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development and distribution of various beauty and wellness products worldwide. It offers skin care devices, cosmetics, and other personal care products, including ageLOC LumiSpa and ageLOC LumiSpa iO; and nutricentials skin care products. The company also provides wellness products, such as LifePak nutritional supplements, ageLOC TR90 weight management system, and Beauty Focus Collagen+. In addition, it is involved in the research and product development of skin care products and nutritional supplements. The company sells its products under the Nu Skin, Pharmanex, and ageLOC brands through retail stores, website, digital platforms, and independent direct sellers and marketers, as well as a service center. Nu Skin Enterprises, Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Provo, Utah.