XCHG (NASDAQ:XCH) & Orion Energy Systems (NASDAQ:OESX) Critical Survey

Orion Energy Systems (NASDAQ:OESX) and XCHG (NASDAQ:XCH) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation and institutional ownership.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Orion Energy Systems and XCHG, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Orion Energy Systems	0	2	2	0	2.50
XCHG	1	1	0	0	1.50

Orion Energy Systems currently has a consensus price target of $36.50, suggesting a potential upside of 85.37%. Given Orion Energy Systems’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Orion Energy Systems is more favorable than XCHG.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Orion Energy Systems and XCHG”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Orion Energy Systems	$86.31 million	0.93	-$3.16 million	($0.05)	-393.80
XCHG	$25.10 million	0.33	-$32.50 million	($1.60)	-1.25

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

Institutional & Insider Ownership

52.6% of Orion Energy Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.3% of Orion Energy Systems shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Orion Energy Systems and XCHG’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Orion Energy Systems	0.04%	11.66%	3.40%
XCHG	N/A	N/A	N/A

Risk and Volatility

Orion Energy Systems has a beta of 0.87, meaning that its stock price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, XCHG has a beta of -1.22, meaning that its stock price is 222% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Orion Energy Systems beats XCHG on 14 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Orion Energy Systems

Orion Energy Systems, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, researches, designs, develops, manufactures, markets, sells, installs, and implements energy management systems for commercial office and retail, area lighting, industrial applications, and government in North America and Germany. It operates in three segments: Lighting, Maintenance, and Electric Vehicle (EV). The company offers light emitting diode (LED) lighting products; construction and engineering services for commercial lighting and energy management system; lighting and electrical system maintenance, repair, and replacement services; and EV charging station and installation solutions. It also provides LED high bay fixtures and LED troffer retrofits; smart lighting controls, a wireless Internet of Things enabled control solution that provides lighting control options and data intelligence capabilities for building managers; and various LED fixtures for lighting and energy management needs comprising fixtures for agribusinesses, parking lots, roadways, retail, mezzanine, outdoor applications, and private label resale. In addition, the company offers lighting-related energy management services, such as site assessment, site field verification, utility incentive and government subsidy management, engineering design, project management, facility design commissioning, and recycling. It serves customers directly and through independent sales agencies and distributors, national account end-users, federal and state government facilities, regional account end-users, electrical distributors, electrical contractors, and energy service companies. Orion Energy Systems, Inc. was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.

About XCHG

XCHG Limited, branded as XCharge, is a company whose subsidiaries design, manufacture, and sell electric vehicle (EV) charging solutions under the X-Charge name in Europe, China, the United States, and other international markets. The company focuses on DC fast-charging infrastructure, including its C6 and C7 series chargers and Net Zero battery-integrated fast-charging systems, and also provides related software upgrades and hardware maintenance services for EV manufacturers, energy companies, and charge point operators. Founded in 2015, XCHG positions itself as a global provider of integrated EV charging solutions that combine high-power charging with smart energy management.