Head to Head Comparison: Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN) and SPAR Group (NASDAQ:SGRP)
by Tristan Rich · The Markets DailySPAR Group (NASDAQ:SGRP – Get Free Report) and Willdan Group (NASDAQ:WLDN – Get Free Report) are both small-cap business services companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, dividends and profitability.
Volatility & Risk
SPAR Group has a beta of 0.21, suggesting that its stock price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Willdan Group has a beta of 1.13, suggesting that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for SPAR Group and Willdan Group, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| SPAR Group | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 |
| Willdan Group | 0 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 3.00 |
Willdan Group has a consensus target price of $112.67, suggesting a potential upside of 51.19%. Given Willdan Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Willdan Group is more favorable than SPAR Group.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
9.6% of SPAR Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 72.3% of Willdan Group shares are held by institutional investors. 43.0% of SPAR Group shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.6% of Willdan Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares SPAR Group and Willdan Group”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| SPAR Group | $136.10 million | 0.06 | -$24.63 million | ($1.03) | -0.28 |
| Willdan Group | $681.55 million | 1.65 | $52.56 million | $3.71 | 20.09 |
Willdan Group has higher revenue and earnings than SPAR Group. SPAR Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Willdan Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares SPAR Group and Willdan Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| SPAR Group | -18.51% | -107.74% | -19.90% |
| Willdan Group | 8.24% | 23.36% | 13.28% |
Summary
Willdan Group beats SPAR Group on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About SPAR Group
SPAR Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides merchandising and brand marketing services in the Americas, the Asia-Pacific, Europe, Middle East, and Africa. The company offers merchandising and marketing services, such as resets and cut-ins; price and inventory audits; stock replenishment and rotation services; out of stock management; promotional event setup; and display management, as well as category management and set up services comprising category and product resets; planogram maintenance; display and shelf services; and point of purchase installation and management. It also provides remodel and retail transformation consisting of store remodels, store department resets, fixture and banner installations, pop-up store services, and store closings; and assembly and installation services, including assembly of merchandise in stores, in-store services, office setup/down-sizing services, and national in-home furniture assembly services. In addition, the company offers business analytics and insights services, such as product dashboards, stock out reporting, visit reporting, real-time service insights, and share of shelf analytics; and fulfillment and distribution services comprising distribution center staffing, point of purchase fulfillment services, kiosk prep, returns processing, picking and packing services, and inventory services. The company serves mass merchandisers; HBAs; pharmacies; and grocery, discount, dollar, convenience, cash and carry, home improvement, consumer electronics, automotive aftermarket, office supply, personal technology, beverage, household products, consumables, financial products, and independent stores. SPAR Group, Inc. was founded in 1967 and is headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan.
About Willdan Group
Willdan Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides professional, technical, and consulting services primarily in the United States. It operates in two segments, Energy, and Engineering and Consulting. The Energy segment offers comprehensive audit and surveys, program design and implementation, master planning, demand reduction, grid optimization, benchmarking analyses, design engineering, construction management, performance contracting, installation, alternative financing, measurement and verification services, and software and data analytics, as well as energy consulting and engineering, turnkey facility and infrastructure projects, and customer support services. The Engineering and Consulting segment provides building and safety, city engineering and code enforcement, development plan review and inspection, disaster recovery, geotechnical and earthquake engineering, planning and surveying, contract staff support, program and construction management, structural engineering, transportation and traffic engineering, and water resources services. This segment also offers district administration, financial consulting, and federal compliance services. It serves public and governmental agencies, including cities, counties, redevelopment agencies, water districts, school districts, and universities; investor and municipal owned energy utilities; state and federal agencies; and commercial and industrial firms, as well as various other special districts and agencies. The company was founded in 1964 and is headquartered in Anaheim, California.