Star (NASDAQ:STHO – Get Free Report) and CoStar Group (NASDAQ:CSGP – Get Free Report) are both real estate companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Star and CoStar Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Star | $110.14 million | 0.83 | -$64.25 million | $1.21 | 6.23 |
| CoStar Group | $3.25 billion | 3.79 | $7.00 million | $0.44 | 69.43 |
CoStar Group has higher revenue and earnings than Star. Star is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CoStar Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk and Volatility
Star has a beta of 1.3, indicating that its stock price is 30% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CoStar Group has a beta of 0.79, indicating that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Profitability
This table compares Star and CoStar Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Star | 14.77% | -0.90% | -0.45% |
| CoStar Group | 4.87% | 4.87% | 3.82% |
Insider and Institutional Ownership
89.3% of Star shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.6% of CoStar Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.1% of Star shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of CoStar Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings for Star and CoStar Group, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Star | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| CoStar Group | 2 | 8 | 10 | 0 | 2.40 |
CoStar Group has a consensus price target of $39.11, suggesting a potential upside of 28.00%. Given CoStar Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe CoStar Group is more favorable than Star.
Summary
CoStar Group beats Star on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Star
Star Holdings engages in the non-ground lease related commercial real estate businesses in the United States. Its portfolio primarily comprises interest in the Asbury Park Waterfront and Magnolia Green residential development projects. Star Holdings is based in New York, New York.
About CoStar Group
CoStar Group, Inc. provides information, analytics, and online marketplace services to the commercial real estate, hospitality, residential, and related professionals industries in the United States, Canada, Europe, the Asia Pacific, and Latin America. The company offers CoStar Property that provides inventory of office, industrial, retail, multifamily, hospitality, and student housing properties and land; CoStar Sales, a robust database of comparable commercial real estate sales transactions; CoStar Market Analytics to view and report on aggregated market and submarket trends; and CoStar Tenant, an online business-to-business prospecting and analytical tool that provides tenant information. It also provides Leasing, a tool to capture, manage, and maintain lease data; CoStar Lease Analysis; Public Record, a searchable database of commercially zoned parcels; CoStar Real Estate Manager, a real estate lease administration, portfolio management, and lease accounting compliance software solution; and CoStar Risk Analytics and CoStar Investment. In addition, it offers apartment marketing sites, such as ApartmentFinder.com, ForRent.com, ApartmentHomeLiving.com, WestsideRentals.com, AFTER55.com, CorporateHousing.com, ForRentUniversity.com, Apartamentos.com, and Off Campus Partners; LoopNet Premium Lister; LoopNet Diamond, Platinum, and Gold Ads; LandsofAmerica.com, LandAndFarm.com, and LandWatch.com for rural land for-sale; BizBuySell.com, BizQuest.com, and FindaFranchise.com for operating businesses and franchises for-sale; Ten-X, an online auction platform for commercial real estate; and HomeSnap, an online and mobile software platform, as well as Homes.com, a homes for sale listings site. The company was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Washington, the District of Columbia.
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