Sprout Social (NASDAQ:SPT) vs. BILL (NYSE:BILL) Financial Analysis

Sprout Social (NASDAQ:SPT) and BILL (NYSE:BILL) are both technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends and risk.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Sprout Social and BILL”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Sprout Social	$457.55 million	1.70	-$43.33 million	($0.50)	-25.72
BILL	$1.65 billion	2.62	-$11.24 million	($0.13)	-390.32

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Sprout Social and BILL, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sprout Social	2	4	4	0	2.20
BILL	1	7	11	1	2.60

Sprout Social presently has a consensus target price of $10.88, suggesting a potential downside of 15.44%. BILL has a consensus target price of $58.56, suggesting a potential upside of 15.40%. Given BILL’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe BILL is more favorable than Sprout Social.

Risk & Volatility

Sprout Social has a beta of 1.01, suggesting that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BILL has a beta of 1.13, suggesting that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

98.0% of BILL shares are held by institutional investors. 9.6% of Sprout Social shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.2% of BILL shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Sprout Social and BILL’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sprout Social	-6.13%	-8.80%	-3.64%
BILL	-0.68%	3.74%	1.39%

Summary

BILL beats Sprout Social on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Sprout Social

Sprout Social, Inc. designs, develops, and operates a web-based social media management platform in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company provides cloud software for social messaging, data and workflows in a unified system of record, intelligence, and action. It offers integrated tools, such as social engagement/response; publishing; reporting and analytics; social listening and business intelligence; reputation management; social commerce; employee advocacy; and automation and workflows. In addition, the company provides smart inbox, social customer relationship management, social monitoring and alerts, customer service tools, and automation; and centralized content planning, creation, and publishing, automated scheduling, content performance reporting, suggested content, message approval workflows, publishing permissions and governance, and content and asset libraries. Further, it offers social media; content performance, customer service and team, custom report builder, and reporting API; and market research, brand health, competitive insights, consumer trends, and product feedback; and social commerce, reputation management, employee advocacy, mobile applications, and chat bot creation and management. Additionally, the company offers professional services consisting of consulting and training services. It serves social and community management; public relations; marketing; influencer marketing; customer service and care; commerce, sales and customer acquisition; recruiting and hiring, product development, and business strategy; and small-and-medium-sized businesses, mid-market companies, enterprises, marketing agencies, government, non-profit, and educational institutions. Sprout Social, Inc. was incorporated in 2010 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

About BILL

BILL Holdings, Inc. provides financial automation software for small and midsize businesses worldwide. The company provides software-as-a-service, cloud-based payments, and spend management products, which allow users to automate accounts payable and accounts receivable transactions, as well as enable users to connect with their suppliers and/or customers to do business, eliminate expense reports, manage cash flows, and improve office efficiency. It also offers onboarding implementation support, and ongoing support and training services. In addition, the company's artificial intelligence enabled software provides connections between suppliers and clients. It serves accounting firms, financial institutions, and software companies. The company was formerly known as Bill.com Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to BILL Holdings, Inc. in February 2023. BILL Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.