Qfin (NASDAQ:QFIN) vs. PROG (NYSE:PRG) Financial Comparison

Qfin (NASDAQ:QFIN) and PROG (NYSE:PRG) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Qfin and PROG’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Qfin	27.48%	20.85%	8.71%
PROG	5.57%	21.88%	9.15%

Dividends

Qfin pays an annual dividend of $1.54 per share and has a dividend yield of 13.3%. PROG pays an annual dividend of $0.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Qfin pays out 28.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. PROG pays out 15.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. PROG has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

74.8% of Qfin shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.9% of PROG shares are owned by institutional investors. 17.1% of Qfin shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 3.7% of PROG shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Qfin has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PROG has a beta of 1.79, suggesting that its stock price is 79% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Qfin and PROG”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Qfin	$2.75 billion	0.51	$856.52 million	$5.46	2.12
PROG	$2.41 billion	0.64	$146.79 million	$3.62	10.73

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Qfin and PROG, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Qfin	1	4	1	0	2.00
PROG	0	3	6	1	2.80

Qfin currently has a consensus target price of $16.31, suggesting a potential upside of 40.95%. PROG has a consensus target price of $49.44, suggesting a potential upside of 27.25%. Given Qfin’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Qfin is more favorable than PROG.

Summary

PROG beats Qfin on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Qfin

Qifu Technology, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates credit-tech platform under the 360 Jietiao brand in the People's Republic of China. It provides credit-driven services that matches borrowers with financial institutions to conduct customer acquisition, initial and credit screening, advanced risk assessment, credit assessment, fund matching, and other post-facilitation services; and platform services, including loan facilitation and post-facilitation services to financial institution partners under intelligence credit engine, referral services, and risk management software-as-a-service. The company also offers e-commerce loans, enterprise loans, and invoice loans to SME owners. It serves financial institutions, consumers, and small- and micro-enterprises. The company was formerly known as 360 DigiTech, Inc. and changed its name to Qifu Technology, Inc. in March 2023. The company was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China.

About PROG

PROG Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:PRG) is a financial technology holding company based in Salt Lake City, Utah with three business segments: Progressive Leasing, which offers lease-to-own transactions primarily to credit-challenged consumers through e-commerce and point-of-sale retail partners, via online, mobile, and in-store solutions; Vive Financial, which provides consumers who may not qualify for traditional prime lending with a variety of second-look, revolving credit products through private label and branded credit cards; and Four Technologies, which provides consumers of all credit backgrounds Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) options through four interest-free installments via its platform, Four.