HP (HPQ) Competitors

HP (NYSE:HPQ) and Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, media sentiment and analyst recommendations.

Which has more risk & volatility, HPQ or AAPL?

HP has a beta of 1.29, meaning that its share price is 29% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Apple has a beta of 1.16, meaning that its share price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Is HPQ or AAPL more profitable?

Apple has a net margin of 24.30% compared to HP's net margin of 4.64%. Apple's return on equity of 170.91% beat HP's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
HP	4.64%	-244.99%	7.97%
Apple	24.30%	170.91%	31.94%

Does the media favor HPQ or AAPL?

In the previous week, Apple had 296 more articles in the media than HP. MarketBeat recorded 323 mentions for Apple and 27 mentions for HP. HP's average media sentiment score of 1.40 beat Apple's score of 0.79 indicating that HP is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
HP	19 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	6 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Apple	184 Very Positive mention(s)	47 Positive mention(s)	48 Neutral mention(s)	27 Negative mention(s)	14 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do insiders & institutionals believe in HPQ or AAPL?

77.5% of HP shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 67.7% of Apple shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of HP shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Apple shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Is HPQ or AAPL a better dividend stock?

HP pays an annual dividend of $1.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.3%. Apple pays an annual dividend of $1.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. HP pays out 44.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Apple pays out 15.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. HP has raised its dividend for 15 consecutive years and Apple has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years. HP is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Which has better earnings & valuation, HPQ or AAPL?

Apple has higher revenue and earnings than HP. HP is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Apple, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
HP	$53.56B	0.47	$2.78B	$2.59	10.44
Apple	$391.04B	8.70	$93.74B	$6.59	34.80

Do analysts recommend HPQ or AAPL?

HP currently has a consensus price target of $29.54, suggesting a potential upside of 9.24%. Apple has a consensus price target of $237.98, suggesting a potential upside of 3.78%. Given HP's higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe HP is more favorable than Apple.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
HP	1 Sell rating(s)	13 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.06
Apple	2 Sell rating(s)	11 Hold rating(s)	16 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.58

Summary

Apple beats HP on 13 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.