NVE (NASDAQ:NVEC – Get Free Report) and LightPath Technologies (NASDAQ:LPTH – Get Free Report) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends and valuation.
Volatility & Risk
NVE has a beta of 1.14, indicating that its stock price is 14% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, LightPath Technologies has a beta of 1.32, indicating that its stock price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current ratings for NVE and LightPath Technologies, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| NVE | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| LightPath Technologies | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3.00 |
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares NVE and LightPath Technologies”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| NVE | $29.80 million | 12.65 | $17.12 million | $3.34 | 23.36 |
| LightPath Technologies | $31.73 million | 2.79 | -$8.01 million | ($0.22) | -10.14 |
NVE has higher earnings, but lower revenue than LightPath Technologies. LightPath Technologies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NVE, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares NVE and LightPath Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| NVE | 58.88% | 24.62% | 24.15% |
| LightPath Technologies | -25.86% | -26.51% | -16.55% |
Insider and Institutional Ownership
66.0% of NVE shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.3% of LightPath Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of NVE shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of LightPath Technologies shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Summary
NVE beats LightPath Technologies on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About NVE
NVE Corporation develops and sells devices that use spintronics, a nanotechnology that relies on electron spin to acquire, store, and transmit information in the United States and internationally. The company manufactures spintronic products, including sensors and couplers for use in acquiring and transmitting data. Its products comprise standard sensors to detect the presence of a magnetic or metallic material to determine position, rotation, or speed for the factory automation market; and custom and medical sensors for medical devices to replace electromechanical magnetic switches. The company also offers spintronic couplers for power conversion and industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) market; and DC-to-DC convertors for use in power conversion systems and industrial networks for the IIoT. In addition, it undertakes contracts for research and development, and licensing of spintronic magnetoresistive random access memory technology. NVE Corporation was founded in 1989 and is headquartered in Eden Prairie, Minnesota.
About LightPath Technologies
LightPath Technologies, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and distributes optical components and assemblies. The company offers precision molded glass aspheric optics, molded and diamond-turned infrared aspheric lenses, and other optical components used to produce products that manipulate light; and infrared products, including catalog and custom infrared optics. Its products are used in defense products, medical devices, laser aided industrial tools, automotive safety applications, barcode scanners, optical data storage, hybrid fiber coax datacom, telecommunications, machine vision and sensors, and other sectors. The company sells its products directly to customers in Europe and Asia. LightPath Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida.
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