Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK) and Freshworks (NASDAQ:FRSH) Head-To-Head Comparison

Freshworks (NASDAQ:FRSH) and Autodesk (NASDAQ:ADSK) 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, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, earnings and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Freshworks and Autodesk’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Freshworks	-13.24%	-6.63%	-4.81%
Autodesk	18.30%	53.87%	12.31%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Freshworks and Autodesk”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Freshworks	$720.42 million	6.08	-$95.37 million	($0.32)	-45.41
Autodesk	$6.13 billion	9.09	$906.00 million	$5.13	51.00

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Freshworks and Autodesk, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Freshworks	1	4	8	0	2.54
Autodesk	0	7	15	0	2.68

Freshworks currently has a consensus target price of $21.14, suggesting a potential upside of 45.51%. Autodesk has a consensus target price of $336.29, suggesting a potential upside of 28.53%. Given Freshworks’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Freshworks is more favorable than Autodesk.

Volatility & Risk

Freshworks has a beta of 0.92, indicating that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Autodesk has a beta of 1.51, indicating that its share price is 51% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

75.6% of Freshworks shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 90.2% of Autodesk shares are owned by institutional investors. 19.2% of Freshworks shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Autodesk shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Autodesk beats Freshworks on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Freshworks

Freshworks Inc., a software development company, provides software-as-a-service products worldwide. It offers Freshworks Customer Service Suite, which provides automated, personalized self-service on various channels, including web, chat, mobile messaging, email, and social; Freshdesk, a ticketing-centric customer service solution; Freshsuccess, a customer success solution; and Freshchat that provides agents with a modern conversational experience to proactively engage customers across digital messaging channels. The company also provides Freshsales, an advanced and user-friendly sales automation solution; Freshmarketer, a marketing automation solution for businesses to redefine their marketing strategies; Freshsales Suite, which offers businesses a unified platform that facilitates cohesive engagement and detailed tracking of customers throughout their entire buying journey; Freshservice that offers virtual agents to help employees resolve issues, make requests, and answer questions without contacting the service desk; and Freshservice for Business Teams, which provides a unified employee service experience while ensuring the secure separation of departmental data. In addition, it offers Freshping to monitor website’s availability and get multichannel alerts if the website goes down; Freshstatus, which allows businesses to create a custom branded website status page for internal or external viewing to communicate website uptime and availability; and Freshsurvey to measure net promoter scores and other satisfaction metrics directly within Freshworks products. The company was formerly known as Freshdesk Inc. and changed its name to Freshworks Inc. in June 2017. Freshworks Inc. was incorporated in 2010 and is headquartered in San Mateo, California.

About Autodesk

Autodesk, Inc. provides 3D design, engineering, and entertainment technology solutions worldwide. The company offers AutoCAD Civil 3D, a surveying, design, analysis, and documentation solution for civil engineering, including land development, transportation, and environmental projects; BuildingConnected, a SaaS preconstruction solution; AutoCAD, a software for professional design, drafting, detailing, and visualization; AutoCAD LT, a drafting and detailing software; computer-aided manufacturing (CAM) software for computer numeric control machining, inspection, and modelling for manufacturing; Fusion 360, a 3D CAD, CAM, and computer-aided engineering tool; and Industry Collections tools for professionals in architecture, engineering and construction, product design and manufacturing, and media and entertainment collection industries. It also provides Inventor tools for 3D mechanical design, simulation, analysis, tooling, visualization, and documentation; Vault, a data management software to manage data in one central location, accelerate design processes, and streamline internal/external collaboration; Maya and 3ds Max software products that offer 3D modeling, animation, effects, rendering, and compositing solutions; and ShotGrid, a cloud-based software for review and production tracking in the media and entertainment industry. It sells its products and services to customers directly, as well as through a network of resellers and distributors. Autodesk, Inc. was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.