Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) vs. Fossil Group (NASDAQ:FOSL) Financial Comparison

Columbia Sportswear (NASDAQ:COLM) and Fossil Group (NASDAQ:FOSL) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, risk and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Columbia Sportswear and Fossil Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Columbia Sportswear	6.05%	11.20%	6.67%
Fossil Group	-7.09%	-59.76%	-7.53%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

47.8% of Columbia Sportswear shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 61.1% of Fossil Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 51.9% of Columbia Sportswear shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 3.8% of Fossil Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Columbia Sportswear has a beta of 0.93, meaning that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Fossil Group has a beta of 1.55, meaning that its share price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Columbia Sportswear and Fossil Group”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Columbia Sportswear	$3.40 billion	0.86	$177.22 million	$3.85	14.79
Fossil Group	$1.00 billion	0.43	-$78.30 million	($1.28)	-5.64

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Columbia Sportswear and Fossil Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Columbia Sportswear	1	3	2	0	2.17
Fossil Group	1	1	2	1	2.60

Columbia Sportswear presently has a consensus target price of $65.40, suggesting a potential upside of 14.88%. Fossil Group has a consensus target price of $9.00, suggesting a potential upside of 24.65%. Given Fossil Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Fossil Group is more favorable than Columbia Sportswear.

Summary

Columbia Sportswear beats Fossil Group on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Columbia Sportswear

Columbia Sportswear Company, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, markets, and distributes outdoor, active, and everyday lifestyle apparel, footwear, accessories, and equipment in the United States, Latin America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Canada. The company provides apparel, accessories, and equipment for hiking, trail running, snow, fishing, hunting, mountaineering, climbing, skiing and snowboarding, trail, and outdoor activities. It offers footwear products that include lightweight hiking boot; trail running shoes; rugged cold weather boots; sandals and shoes for use in water activities; and footwear for lifestyle wear. In addition, it owned network of branded and outlet retail stores; brand-specific e-commerce sites; and concession or franchise-based arrangements with third parties at branded outlet and shop-in-shop retail locations, as well as through independently operated specialty outdoor and sporting goods stores, sporting goods chains, department store chains, internet retailers, and international distributors. The company sells its products under the Columbia, Mountain Hard Wear, SOREL, and prAna brand names. Columbia Sportswear Company was founded in 1938 and is headquartered in Portland, Oregon.

About Fossil Group

Fossil Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, markets, and distributes consumer fashion accessories in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company’s products include traditional watches, smartwatches, jewelry, handbags, small leather goods, belts, and sunglasses. It also manufactures and distributes private label brands, as well as branded products purchased for resell in other branded retail stores. The company offers its products under its proprietary brands, such as FOSSIL, SKAGEN, MICHELE, RELIC, and ZODIAC; and under the licensed brands, including ARMANI EXCHANGE, DIESEL, DKNY, EMPORIO ARMANI, KATE SPADE NEW YORK, MICHAEL KORS, TORY BURCH, and Skechers. The company sells its products through company-owned retail and outlet stores, department and specialty retail stores, mass market stores, e-commerce sites, licensed and franchised FOSSIL retail stores, and retail concessions, as well as sells its products on airlines. The company was formerly known as Fossil, Inc. and changed its name to Fossil Group, Inc. in May 2013. Fossil Group, Inc. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Richardson, Texas.