Critical Analysis: Copa (NYSE:CPA) vs. Surf Air Mobility (NYSE:SRFM)

Copa (NYSE:CPA) and Surf Air Mobility (NYSE:SRFM) are both transportation companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, profitability, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

70.1% of Copa shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 17.7% of Surf Air Mobility shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.2% of Surf Air Mobility shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Copa and Surf Air Mobility’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Copa	18.76%	26.01%	10.98%
Surf Air Mobility	-103.39%	N/A	-67.78%

Risk and Volatility

Copa has a beta of 1, indicating that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, Surf Air Mobility has a beta of 2.74, indicating that its stock price is 174% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Copa and Surf Air Mobility, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Copa	0	1	11	1	3.00
Surf Air Mobility	1	1	2	0	2.25

Copa presently has a consensus price target of $168.91, suggesting a potential upside of 10.61%. Surf Air Mobility has a consensus price target of $3.08, suggesting a potential upside of 236.24%. Given Surf Air Mobility’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Surf Air Mobility is more favorable than Copa.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Copa and Surf Air Mobility”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Copa	$3.62 billion	1.74	$671.65 million	$17.15	8.90
Surf Air Mobility	$106.56 million	0.91	-$110.56 million	($2.65)	-0.35

Copa has higher revenue and earnings than Surf Air Mobility. Surf Air Mobility is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Copa, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Copa beats Surf Air Mobility on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Copa

Copa Holdings, S.A., through its subsidiaries, provides airline passenger and cargo services. The company offers approximately 375 daily scheduled flights to 82 destinations in 32 countries in North, Central, and South America, as well as the Caribbean from its Panama City hub. As of December 31, 2023, it operated a fleet of 106 aircraft comprising 76 Boeing 737-Next Generation aircraft, 29 Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft, and one Boeing 737-800 Boeing Converted Freighter. The company was founded in 1947 and is based in Panama City, Panama.

About Surf Air Mobility

Surf Air Mobility Inc. operates as an electric aviation and air travel company in the United States. The company offers an air mobility platform with scheduled routes and on demand charter flights operated by third parties. Surf Air Mobility Inc. is headquartered in Hawthorne, California.