Reviewing Vera Bradley (VRA) and The Competition

Vera Bradley (NASDAQ:VRA) is one of 60 publicly-traded companies in the “RETAIL – APP/SHOE” industry, but how does it compare to its rivals? We will compare Vera Bradley to related companies based on the strength of its valuation, earnings, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, risk and analyst recommendations.

Volatility & Risk

Vera Bradley has a beta of 1.59, suggesting that its share price is 59% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vera Bradley’s rivals have a beta of 1.27, suggesting that their average share price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Vera Bradley and its rivals revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vera Bradley	$269.65 million	-$47.84 million	-2.17
Vera Bradley Competitors	$5.99 billion	$344.23 million	12.82

Vera Bradley’s rivals have higher revenue and earnings than Vera Bradley. Vera Bradley is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Vera Bradley and its rivals, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vera Bradley	1	2	0	0	1.67
Vera Bradley Competitors	1148	5341	5690	178	2.40

As a group, “RETAIL – APP/SHOE” companies have a potential upside of 28.92%. Given Vera Bradley’s rivals stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Vera Bradley has less favorable growth aspects than its rivals.

Profitability

This table compares Vera Bradley and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vera Bradley	-17.74%	-12.00%	-6.48%
Vera Bradley Competitors	-10.52%	-12.10%	1.29%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

59.9% of Vera Bradley shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 66.4% of shares of all “RETAIL – APP/SHOE” companies are owned by institutional investors. 12.1% of Vera Bradley shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 19.0% of shares of all “RETAIL – APP/SHOE” companies are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Vera Bradley rivals beat Vera Bradley on 11 of the 13 factors compared.

Vera Bradley Company Profile

Vera Bradley, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells women’s handbags, luggage and travel items, fashion and home accessories, and gifts. It operates through three segments: Vera Bradley Direct, Vera Bradley Indirect, and Pura Vida. The company offers bag products, such as totes, crossbodies, satchels, clutches, backpacks, baby bags, and lunch bags; accessories, including ID holders, lanyards, wallets, wristlets, eyewear, scarves, hair accessories, and various technology accessories; bracelets, rings, and necklaces under Pura Vida brand name; and travel products consist of rolling luggage, cosmetics, and travel and packing accessories, as well as travel bags comprising duffel and weekend bags. It also provides home products that include throw blankets, beach towels, and comforters, as well as items, such as mugs and tumblers; apparel/footwear comprising sleepwear, footwear, outerwear, tees and hoodies, and socks; and stationery and merchandising products, as well as freight, licensing, and gift card breakage services. The company sells its Vera Bradley branded products through its full-line and outlet stores in the United States; verabradley.com, an online outlet site; its annual outlet sale in Fort Wayne, Indiana. It sells its Pura Vida branded products through wholesale retailers and Pura Vida websites, including www.puravidabracelets.com, www.puravidabracelets.eu, and www.puravidabracelets.ca; and Vera Bradley Indirect branded products to specialty retail locations, department stores, national accounts, third party e-commerce sites, third-party inventory liquidators, and through licensing agreements. Vera Bradley, Inc. was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Roanoke, Indiana.