STEP Energy Services (STEP) Competitors

AGF Management (TSE:AGF.B) and STEP Energy Services (TSE:STEP) are both small-cap trading companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, media sentiment, profitability, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership and risk.

Which has more volatility & risk, AGF.B or STEP?

AGF Management has a beta of 1.73, meaning that its stock price is 73% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, STEP Energy Services has a beta of 2.07, meaning that its stock price is 107% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media favor AGF.B or STEP?

In the previous week, AGF Management had 3 more articles in the media than STEP Energy Services. MarketBeat recorded 3 mentions for AGF Management and 0 mentions for STEP Energy Services. AGF Management's average media sentiment score of 0.28 beat STEP Energy Services' score of 0.00 indicating that AGF Management is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Overall Sentiment
AGF Management	Neutral
STEP Energy Services	Neutral

Do analysts prefer AGF.B or STEP?

AGF Management currently has a consensus price target of C$13.83, suggesting a potential upside of 12.83%. STEP Energy Services has a consensus price target of C$5.04, suggesting a potential upside of 16.71%. Given STEP Energy Services' higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe STEP Energy Services is more favorable than AGF Management.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AGF Management	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67
STEP Energy Services	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	2 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of AGF.B or STEP?

12.9% of AGF Management shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 58.3% of STEP Energy Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 18.7% of AGF Management shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of STEP Energy Services shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Is AGF.B or STEP more profitable?

AGF Management has a net margin of 16.58% compared to STEP Energy Services' net margin of 4.10%. STEP Energy Services' return on equity of 10.51% beat AGF Management's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AGF Management	16.58%	7.64%	5.20%
STEP Energy Services	4.10%	10.51%	9.15%

Which has higher valuation & earnings, AGF.B or STEP?

AGF Management has higher earnings, but lower revenue than STEP Energy Services. STEP Energy Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than AGF Management, 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
AGF Management	C$517.16M	1.51	C$85.73M	C$1.28	9.58
STEP Energy Services	C$1.00B	0.31	C$41.05M	C$0.58	7.48

Summary

AGF Management beats STEP Energy Services on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.