Analyzing AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) & Acadian Asset Management (NYSE:AAMI)

AllianceBernstein (NYSE:AB) and Acadian Asset Management (NYSE:AAMI) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares AllianceBernstein and Acadian Asset Management’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AllianceBernstein	9.46%	17.77%	17.76%
Acadian Asset Management	16.81%	1,000.27%	18.11%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares AllianceBernstein and Acadian Asset Management”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AllianceBernstein	$4.48 billion	0.93	$264.18 million	$3.72	9.71
Acadian Asset Management	$505.60 million	1.94	$85.00 million	$2.24	11.73

AllianceBernstein has higher revenue and earnings than Acadian Asset Management. AllianceBernstein is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Acadian Asset Management, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

19.3% of AllianceBernstein shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.7% of Acadian Asset Management shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of AllianceBernstein shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 27.7% of Acadian Asset Management shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for AllianceBernstein and Acadian Asset Management, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AllianceBernstein	0	1	4	0	2.80
Acadian Asset Management	0	1	0	0	2.00

AllianceBernstein presently has a consensus price target of $42.40, indicating a potential upside of 17.39%. Acadian Asset Management has a consensus price target of $27.00, indicating a potential upside of 2.74%. Given AllianceBernstein’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe AllianceBernstein is more favorable than Acadian Asset Management.

Risk and Volatility

AllianceBernstein has a beta of 1.21, meaning that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Acadian Asset Management has a beta of 1.46, meaning that its stock price is 46% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

AllianceBernstein pays an annual dividend of $3.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 8.5%. Acadian Asset Management pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. AllianceBernstein pays out 82.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Acadian Asset Management pays out 1.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Summary

Acadian Asset Management beats AllianceBernstein on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About AllianceBernstein

AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. is a publicly owned investment manager. The firm is a related adviser The firm manages separate client focused portfolios for its clients. The firm primarily invests in common and preferred stocks, warrants and convertible securities, government and corporate fxed-income securities, commodities, currencies, real estate-related assets and infation-protected securities. The firm employs quantitative analysis along with long-term purchases, short-term purchases, trading, short sales, margin transactions, option strategies including writing covered options, uncovered options and spread strategies to make its investments. The firm obtains external research to complement its in-house research. The firm was formerly known as Alliance Capital Management Holding LP. AllianceBernstein Holding L.P. was founded in 1967 and is based in Nashville,Tennessee.

About Acadian Asset Management

Acadian Asset Management Inc. is a publically owned asset management holding company. The firm provides its services to individuals and institutions. It manages separate client focused portfolios through its subsidiaries. The firm also launches equity mutual funds for its clients. It invests in public equity, fixed income, and alternative investment markets through its subsidiaries. The firm was founded in 1980 is based Boston, Massachusetts. It was formally known as BrightSphere Investment Group plc. BrightSphere Investment Group Inc. was formed in 1980 and is based in Boston, Massachusetts.