Head to Head Comparison: iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ) versus Madison Square Garden Entertainment (NYSE:MSGE)

Madison Square Garden Entertainment (NYSE:MSGE) and iQIYI (NASDAQ:IQ) are both communication services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

96.9% of Madison Square Garden Entertainment shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 52.7% of iQIYI shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.4% of Madison Square Garden Entertainment shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 57.8% of iQIYI shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Madison Square Garden Entertainment and iQIYI”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Madison Square Garden Entertainment	$1.06 billion	3.00	$66.19 million	$1.38	57.03
iQIYI	$3.80 billion	0.27	-$29.50 million	($0.12)	-9.00

Madison Square Garden Entertainment has higher earnings, but lower revenue than iQIYI. iQIYI is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Madison Square Garden Entertainment, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Madison Square Garden Entertainment and iQIYI, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Madison Square Garden Entertainment	0	6	4	1	2.55
iQIYI	1	4	1	0	2.00

Madison Square Garden Entertainment currently has a consensus price target of $91.62, suggesting a potential upside of 16.43%. iQIYI has a consensus price target of $1.73, suggesting a potential upside of 60.19%. Given iQIYI’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe iQIYI is more favorable than Madison Square Garden Entertainment.

Volatility and Risk

Madison Square Garden Entertainment has a beta of 0.56, indicating that its stock price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, iQIYI has a beta of 0.19, indicating that its stock price is 81% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Madison Square Garden Entertainment and iQIYI’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Madison Square Garden Entertainment	6.24%	480.83%	4.16%
iQIYI	-3.24%	-6.29%	-1.78%

Summary

Madison Square Garden Entertainment beats iQIYI on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Madison Square Garden Entertainment

Madison Square Garden Entertainment Corp. engages in the provision of entertainment services. Its portfolio of venues includes The Garden, Radio City Music Hall, the Beacon Theatre, The Theater at Madison Square, and The Chicago Theatre. The company was founded in 1879 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

About iQIYI

iQIYI, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides online entertainment video services in the People's Republic of China. It offers various products and services, including online video, online games, online literature, animations, and other products. The company operates a platform that provides a collection of internet video content, such as professionally produced content licensed from professional content providers and self-produced content. It also offers membership, online advertising, content distribution, and live broadcasting services. In addition, the company operates iQIYI Show, a live broadcasting platform that enables users to follow their favorite hosts and shows in real time through live broadcasting; and iQIYI Lite that offers an easy and quick access to the personalized videos based on their user preferences. Further, it is involved in the talent agency and IP licensing activities, as well as engages in developing a video community app. The company was formerly known as Qiyi.com, Inc. and changed its name to iQIYI, Inc. in November 2017. iQIYI, Inc. was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Beijing, China. iQIYI, Inc. is a subsidiary of Baidu, Inc.