Comparing Copa (CPA) and Its Competitors

Copa (NYSE:CPA) is one of 37 public companies in the “TRANS – AIRLINE” industry, but how does it contrast to its rivals? We will compare Copa to similar companies based on the strength of its profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Copa and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Copa	18.57%	25.62%	10.92%
Copa Competitors	5.04%	18.02%	4.18%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

70.1% of Copa shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 52.5% of shares of all “TRANS – AIRLINE” companies are held by institutional investors. 8.5% of shares of all “TRANS – AIRLINE” companies are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Copa has a beta of 1.01, meaning that its share price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Copa’s rivals have a beta of 11.31, meaning that their average share price is 1,031% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Copa pays an annual dividend of $6.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.9%. Copa pays out 42.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “TRANS – AIRLINE” companies pay a dividend yield of 2.3% and pay out 21.0% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Copa has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Copa and its rivals gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Copa	$3.62 billion	$671.65 million	7.07
Copa Competitors	$14.09 billion	$666.85 million	6.11

Copa’s rivals have higher revenue, but lower earnings than Copa. Copa is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Copa and its rivals, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Copa	0	2	9	1	2.92
Copa Competitors	658	2294	3421	241	2.49

Copa presently has a consensus target price of $166.30, indicating a potential upside of 44.61%. As a group, “TRANS – AIRLINE” companies have a potential upside of 29.74%. Given Copa’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Copa is more favorable than its rivals.

Summary

Copa beats its rivals on 11 of the 15 factors compared.

Copa Company Profile

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.