Comparing Accolade (NASDAQ:ACCD) and ACV Auctions (NASDAQ:ACVA)

ACV Auctions (NASDAQ:ACVA) and Accolade (NASDAQ:ACCD) are both retail/wholesale companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and risk.

Volatility & Risk

ACV Auctions has a beta of 1.56, indicating that its stock price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Accolade has a beta of 2.15, indicating that its stock price is 115% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares ACV Auctions and Accolade’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ACV Auctions	-15.64%	-13.97%	-6.89%
Accolade	-24.09%	-22.53%	-12.08%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares ACV Auctions and Accolade’s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ACV Auctions	$481.23 million	6.05	-$75.26 million	($0.46)	-38.61
Accolade	$414.29 million	1.41	-$99.81 million	($1.33)	-5.59

ACV Auctions has higher revenue and earnings than Accolade. ACV Auctions is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Accolade, 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 ACV Auctions and Accolade, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ACV Auctions	0	2	9	0	2.82
Accolade	0	4	12	0	2.75

ACV Auctions currently has a consensus target price of $20.21, indicating a potential upside of 13.82%. Accolade has a consensus target price of $14.57, indicating a potential upside of 95.85%. Given Accolade’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Accolade is more favorable than ACV Auctions.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

88.6% of ACV Auctions shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 85.0% of Accolade shares are held by institutional investors. 8.5% of ACV Auctions shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 8.3% of Accolade shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

ACV Auctions beats Accolade on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ACV Auctions

ACV Auctions Inc. operates a digital marketplace that connects buyers and sellers for the online auction of wholesale vehicles. The company's marketplace platform includes digital marketplace, which connects buyers and sellers by providing online auction, which facilitates real-time transactions of wholesale vehicles; Run List for pre-filtering and pre-screening of vehicles up to 24 hours prior to an auction taking place; ACV transportation service to enable the buyers to see real-time transportation quotes and status reports of the vehicle; ACV capital, a short-term inventory financing services for buyers to purchase vehicles; and Go Green's seller assurance service for against claims related to defects in the vehicle. It also provides remarketing centers, which offers value-added services, such as vehicle reconditioning and storage for dealers and commercial partners. In addition, the company offers data services, including True360 report, which provides cosmetic and structural vehicle assessments integrated into vehicle history reports for dealer to make wholesale and retail transaction decisions on and off the marketplace; ACV market report provides transaction data and condition reports for comparable used vehicles, including pricing data from third-party sources and allows dealers to determine pricing and valuation strategies for used vehicles; and ACV MAX inventory management software enables dealers to manage their inventory and set pricing while turning vehicles. Further, it provides data and technology through inspection, such as condition reports, virtual lift solutions, apex device, and vehicle intelligence platform; and marketplace enablement, comprising MyACV application, private marketplaces, operations automation, live appraisals, and programmatic buying service. ACV Auctions Inc. was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Buffalo, New York.

About Accolade

Accolade, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the development and provision of personalized and technology-enabled solutions that help people to understand, navigate, and utilize the healthcare system and their workplace benefits in the United States. The company offers a platform with cloud-based technology and multimodal support from a team of health assistants and clinicians, including registered nurses, physician medical directors, pharmacists, behavioral health specialists, women's health specialists, case management specialists, expert medical opinion providers, and virtual primary care physicians. It also provides medical opinion and decision support services; and technology and administrative services to the medical practice PCs providing virtual primary care services. The company serves employers who provide their employees and their employees' families a single place to turn for their health, healthcare, and benefits needs. Accolade, Inc. was incorporated in 2007 and is headquartered in Seattle, Washington.