J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) vs. Children’s Place (NASDAQ:PLCE) Head to Head Analysis

Children’s Place (NASDAQ:PLCE) and J.Jill (NYSE:JILL) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, profitability, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Children’s Place and J.Jill’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Children’s Place	-9.09%	N/A	-12.53%
J.Jill	3.56%	24.44%	6.81%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

40.7% of J.Jill shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.9% of Children’s Place shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.4% of J.Jill shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Children’s Place and J.Jill”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Children’s Place	$1.21 billion	0.05	-$88.26 million	($4.84)	-0.52
J.Jill	$596.55 million	0.48	$27.89 million	$1.37	14.03

J.Jill has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Children’s Place. Children’s Place is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than J.Jill, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Children’s Place and J.Jill, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Children’s Place	1	1	0	0	1.50
J.Jill	0	5	2	0	2.29

Children’s Place currently has a consensus price target of $4.00, suggesting a potential upside of 59.36%. J.Jill has a consensus price target of $16.50, suggesting a potential downside of 14.15%. Given Children’s Place’s higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Children’s Place is more favorable than J.Jill.

Volatility & Risk

Children’s Place has a beta of 1.97, meaning that its stock price is 97% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, J.Jill has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

J.Jill beats Children’s Place on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Children’s Place

The Children’s Place, Inc. engages in the provision of apparel, footwear, accessories, and other items for children. The firm also designs contracts to manufacture and sell fashionable and value-priced merchandise under the brand names of The Children’s Place, Baby Place, and Gymboree. It operates through The Children’s Place U.S. and The Children’s Place International segments. The Children’s Place U.S. segment refers to the company’s U.S. and Puerto Rico-based stores and revenue from its U.S. based wholesale business. The Children’s Place International segment is involved in the Canadian-based stores, revenue from the company’s Canadian-based wholesale business, as well as revenue from international franchisees. The company was founded by David Pulver and Clinton A. Clark in 1969 and is headquartered in Secaucus, NJ.

About J.Jill

J.Jill, Inc. operates as an omnichannel retailer for women's apparel under the J.Jill brand in the United States. It offers apparel, footwear, and accessories, including scarves and jewelry. The company markets its products through retail stores, website, and catalogs. J.Jill, Inc. was founded in 1959 and is headquartered in Quincy, Massachusetts.