CURO Group (NYSE:CURO) and The9 (NASDAQ:NCTY) Financial Analysis

CURO Group (NYSE:CURO) and The9 (NASDAQ:NCTY) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, dividends, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

39.9% of CURO Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.5% of The9 shares are held by institutional investors. 26.1% of CURO Group shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 30.8% of The9 shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares CURO Group and The9’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CURO Group	-35.34%	N/A	-8.23%
The9	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for CURO Group and The9, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CURO Group	0	1	0	0	2.00
The9	0	0	0	0	N/A

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares CURO Group and The9’s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CURO Group	$418.33 million	0.01	-$266.73 million	($6.49)	-0.01
The9	$179.05 million	0.21	$2.82 million	N/A	N/A

The9 has lower revenue, but higher earnings than CURO Group.

Volatility & Risk

CURO Group has a beta of 2.21, indicating that its stock price is 121% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, The9 has a beta of 1.88, indicating that its stock price is 88% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

The9 beats CURO Group on 5 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CURO Group

CURO Group Holdings Corp., together with its subsidiaries, provides consumer finance products in the United States and Canada. The company offers secured and unsecured installment loans, revolving line of credit, and single-pay loans; and credit protection insurance, check cashing, money transfer, foreign currency exchange, and other ancillary financial products and services, as well as reloadable prepaid debit cards and demand deposit accounts. The company also provides loans through online. It operates under the Covington Credit, Heights Finance, Quick Credit, Southern Finance, First Heritage Credit, Cash Money, LendDirect, and Flexiti brands. The company was formerly known as Speedy Group Holdings Corp. and changed its name to CURO Group Holdings Corp. in May 2016. CURO Group Holdings Corp. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.

About The9

The9 Limited, together with its subsidiaries, operates as Internet company in the People's Republic of China and internationally. It also involves in the operation of cryptocurrency mining and Non-Fungible Token platform NFTSTAR, a NFT trading and community platform that provides users with purchase, trade, and interactive activities. The company was formerly known as GameNow.net Limited and changed its name to The9 Limited in February 2004. The9 Limited was incorporated in 1999 and is headquartered in Shanghai, the People's Republic of China.