Head-To-Head Review: Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) & Leifras (NASDAQ:LFS)

Leifras (NASDAQ:LFS) and Carriage Services (NYSE:CSV) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Leifras and Carriage Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Leifras	N/A	N/A	N/A
Carriage Services	10.69%	19.23%	3.71%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

66.5% of Carriage Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of Carriage Services shares are owned by 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 summary of current ratings for Leifras and Carriage Services, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Leifras	1	0	0	0	1.00
Carriage Services	1	1	3	0	2.40

Carriage Services has a consensus price target of $51.00, indicating a potential upside of 57.75%. Given Carriage Services’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Carriage Services is more favorable than Leifras.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Leifras and Carriage Services”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Leifras	$74.80 million	0.77	$2.80 million	$0.13	16.97
Carriage Services	$417.29 million	1.23	$51.51 million	$2.79	11.59

Carriage Services has higher revenue and earnings than Leifras. Carriage Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Leifras, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Carriage Services beats Leifras on 12 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Leifras

Headquartered in Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, we are a sports and social business company dedicated to youth sports and community engagement. We primarily provide services related to the organization and operations of sports schools and sports events for children. Building upon our experience and know-how in sports education, we also operate a robust social business sector, dispatching sports coaches to meet various community needs. At the core of our operations is the children’s sports school business. When we refer to a sports school, it refers to a series of courses and programs that we offer to teach a sport, instead of a physical location. As of December 31, 2024, we were recognized as one of Japan’s largest operators of children’s sports schools in terms of both membership and facilities. As of the date of this prospectus, we hold our sports classes at more than 4,500 facility locations in Japan nationwide, serving over 62,400 members. The number of members is based on the number of students taking classes; if a student is enrolled in two different classes, this student is counted as two members. We provide 13 sports schools, from soccer school “Liberta” and basketball school “Porte,” to rhythmic karate school “Quore” and kendo school “Kokoro.” We also offer classes that cater to the various needs of different age groups and sports capability levels. For instance, our “JJMIX” classes offer beginners from the age of two and up the opportunity to experience multiple sports, and our “Rugina” classes are designed specifically for girls. Approximately 87% of our sports school members are elementary school students, with additional programs for preschoolers, nursery school children, kindergarteners, and junior high school students. These classes are taught by professional coaches who bring their expertise and passion to each session, ensuring that students receive high-quality coaching in safe environments. Our sports school business also extends to sports merchandise sales and commissioned special guidance services. Our approach to sports education emphasizes the development of non-cognitive skills, which are crucial for success both inside and outside the sports arena. Following our teaching principle “acknowledge, praise, encourage, and motivate,” our classes integrate non-cognitive skills, such as motivation, teamwork, strategic thinking, and sportsmanship, into our sports curriculum. For instance, our soccer program focuses on developing technical skills, tactical understanding, and teamwork, and our martial arts programs in karate and kendo promote physical fitness and self-discipline. Our holistic approach integrates physical and mental development, setting us apart in the industry. Building upon our experience and know-how in sports education, our social business mainly dispatches sports coaches to meet various community needs. Our school club support business provides sports coaching in school club activities and physical education classes and coordinates collaborations between school clubs and private companies. Our LEIF after-school daycare service supports children with disabilities or developmental characteristics through soccer therapy, promoting independence and improving life skills. Our involvement also extends to facility management services at public sports facilities, focusing on providing sports coaching for people of all ages. Our elderly healthcare initiative offers exercise programs for the elderly, including exercise instruction such as preventive nursing care exercises, yoga, and other health promotion services at community centers and healthcare facilities. By addressing these diverse needs, we aim to promote physical health, social inclusion, and community well-being across different demographics. Our headquarters are located in Tokyo, Japan.

About Carriage Services

Carriage Services, Inc. provides funeral and cemetery services, and merchandise in the United States. It operates in two segments, Funeral Home Operations and Cemetery Operations. The Funeral Home Operations segment provides consultation services; funeral home facilities for visitation and memorial services; transportation services; removal and preparation of remains; sale of caskets and urns; cremation services; and related funeral merchandise. The Cemetery Operations segment sells interment rights for grave sites, lawn crypts, mausoleum spaces, and niches; related cemetery merchandise, including memorial markers, outer burial containers, and monuments; and interments, inurnments, and installation of cemetery merchandise services. Carriage Services, Inc. was founded in 1991 and is based in Houston, Texas.