Contrasting Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) & Kona Grill (OTCMKTS:KONAQ)

Portillo’s (NASDAQ:PTLO) and Kona Grill (OTCMKTS:KONAQ) are both small-cap retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, risk and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Portillo’s and Kona Grill’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Portillo’s	2.27%	3.98%	1.31%
Kona Grill	N/A	N/A	N/A

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Portillo’s and Kona Grill’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Portillo’s	$642.93 million	1.31	$10.85 million	$0.26	58.27
Kona Grill	$156.94 million	0.01	-$31.97 million	N/A	N/A

Portillo’s has higher revenue and earnings than Kona Grill.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Portillo’s and Kona Grill, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Portillo’s	0	1	5	0	2.83
Kona Grill	0	0	0	0	N/A

Portillo’s currently has a consensus target price of $23.00, indicating a potential upside of 51.82%. Given Portillo’s’ higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Portillo’s is more favorable than Kona Grill.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

81.7% of Portillo’s shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.2% of Portillo’s shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 31.5% of Kona Grill shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Portillo’s has a beta of 2.05, indicating that its stock price is 105% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kona Grill has a beta of 0.62, indicating that its stock price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Portillo’s beats Kona Grill on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Portillo’s

Portillo's Inc. owns and operates fast casual and quick service restaurants in the United States. The company offers Chicago-style hot dogs and sausages, Italian beef sandwiches, burgers, chopped salads, crinkle-cut French fries, homemade chocolate cakes, and milkshakes. The company also offers its products through its website. Portillo's Inc. was founded in 1963 and is based in Oak Brook, Illinois.

About Kona Grill

Kona Grill, Inc. owns and operates upscale casual restaurants under the Kona Grill brand name. As of April 30, 2019, it operated 27 full-service restaurants in the United States. On April 30, 2019, Kona Grill, Inc., along with its affiliates, filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The company is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.