Comparing 3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) and Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU)

3D Systems (NYSE:DDD) and Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk and earnings.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares 3D Systems and Intuit”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
3D Systems	$488.07 million	0.78	-$363.17 million	($2.84)	-1.01
Intuit	$16.29 billion	10.48	$2.96 billion	$10.84	56.33

Intuit has higher revenue and earnings than 3D Systems. 3D Systems is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Intuit, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares 3D Systems and Intuit’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
3D Systems	-78.14%	-15.29%	-7.21%
Intuit	18.19%	18.64%	10.87%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

64.5% of 3D Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.7% of Intuit shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.5% of 3D Systems shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.9% of Intuit shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for 3D Systems and Intuit, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
3D Systems	0	2	2	0	2.50
Intuit	0	4	14	0	2.78

3D Systems presently has a consensus target price of $3.25, indicating a potential upside of 13.64%. Intuit has a consensus target price of $735.71, indicating a potential upside of 20.48%. Given Intuit’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Intuit is more favorable than 3D Systems.

Risk & Volatility

3D Systems has a beta of 1.66, indicating that its share price is 66% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Intuit has a beta of 1.24, indicating that its share price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Intuit beats 3D Systems on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About 3D Systems

3D Systems Corporation provides 3D printing and digital manufacturing solutions in the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and internationally. The company offers 3D printers technologies, such as stereolithography, selective laser sintering, direct metal printing, multi jet printing, color jet printing, polymer extrusion, and extrusion and SLA based bioprinting that transform digital data input generated by 3D design software, computer aided design (CAD) software, or other 3D design tools into printed parts. It also develops, blends, and markets various print materials, such as plastic, nylon, metal, composite, elastomeric, wax, polymeric dental materials, and biocompatible materials. In addition, the company provides digital design tools, including software, scanners, and haptic devices, as well as solutions for product design, simulation, mold and die design, 3D scan-to-print, reverse engineering, production machining, metrology, and inspection and manufacturing workflows under the Geomagic brand. Further, it offers 3D Sprint and 3DXpert, a proprietary software to prepare and optimize CAD data and manage the additive manufacturing processes, which provides automated support building and placement, build platform management, print simulation, and print queue management; and Bioprint Pro, a software solution that allows researchers to design and bioprint repeatable experiments. Additionally, the company provides maintenance and training services; manufacturing services; and software and precision healthcare services. It primarily serves companies and small and midsize businesses in medical, dental, automotive, aerospace, durable goods, government, defense, technology, jewelry, electronic, education, consumer goods, energy, biotechnology, and other industries through direct sales force, channel partners, and appointed distributors. 3D Systems Corporation was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

About Intuit

Intuit Inc. provides financial management and compliance products and services for consumers, small businesses, self-employed, and accounting professionals in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Small Business & Self-Employed, Consumer, Credit Karma, and ProTax. The Small Business & Self-Employed segment provides QuickBooks services, that includes financial and business management online services and desktop software, payroll solutions, time tracking, merchant payment processing solutions, and financing for small businesses; and Mailchimp services, such as e-commerce, marketing automation, and customer relationship management. This segment also offers QuickBooks online services and desktop software solutions comprising QuickBooks Online Advanced, a cloud-based solution; QuickBooks Enterprise, a hosted solution; and QuickBooks Self-Employed solution; payment-processing solutions, including credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, and ACH payment services; and financial supplies and financing for small businesses, as well as electronic filing of federal and state income tax returns. The Consumer segment provides TurboTax income tax preparation products and services. The Credit Karma segment offers consumers with a personal finance platform that provides personalized recommendations of home, auto, and personal loans, as well as credit cards and insurance products. The ProTax segment provides Lacerte, ProSeries, and ProFile desktop tax-preparation software products; and ProConnect Tax Online tax products, electronic tax filing service, and bank products and related services. It sells products and services through various sales and distribution channels, including multi-channel shop-and-buy experiences, websites and call centers, mobile application stores, and retail and other channels. The company was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Mountain View, California.