Comparing Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) & Vision Marine Technologies (NASDAQ:VMAR)

Smith & Wesson Brands (NASDAQ:SWBI) and Vision Marine Technologies (NASDAQ:VMAR) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Smith & Wesson Brands and Vision Marine Technologies, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Smith & Wesson Brands	1	2	1	0	2.00
Vision Marine Technologies	1	0	0	0	1.00

Smith & Wesson Brands presently has a consensus price target of $12.00, suggesting a potential upside of 27.59%. Given Smith & Wesson Brands’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Smith & Wesson Brands is more favorable than Vision Marine Technologies.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

59.3% of Smith & Wesson Brands shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 53.8% of Vision Marine Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. 1.6% of Smith & Wesson Brands shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 40.4% of Vision Marine Technologies shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Smith & Wesson Brands has a beta of 0.94, meaning that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vision Marine Technologies has a beta of 0.22, meaning that its share price is 78% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Smith & Wesson Brands and Vision Marine Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Smith & Wesson Brands	2.34%	3.10%	2.00%
Vision Marine Technologies	-1,016.64%	-122.13%	-82.82%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Smith & Wesson Brands and Vision Marine Technologies”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Smith & Wesson Brands	$471.40 million	0.88	$13.43 million	$0.24	39.19
Vision Marine Technologies	$2.79 million	0.50	-$10.33 million	($281.54)	-0.01

Smith & Wesson Brands has higher revenue and earnings than Vision Marine Technologies. Vision Marine Technologies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Smith & Wesson Brands, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Smith & Wesson Brands beats Vision Marine Technologies on 13 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Smith & Wesson Brands

Smith & Wesson Brands, Inc. is a holding company, which engages in the manufacture, design, and provision of firearms. Its portfolio includes handguns, long guns, handcuffs, suppressor, and other firearm-related products. The firm’s brands are Smith & Wesson, M&P, Thompson/Center Arms, and Gemtech. The company was founded by Horace Smith and Daniel Baird Wesson in 1852 and is headquartered in Maryville, TN.

About Vision Marine Technologies

Vision Marine Technologies Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, sells, and rents electric boats in Canada, the United States, and internationally. It offers e-motion electric powertrain technology; e-motion electric outboard powertrain system; electric boats; maintenance, repair, and customer support services; as well as manufactures customized boats. The company also provides its products through website and distributors. It serves original equipment manufacturers, retail customer, boat clubs, and boat rental operations. The company was formerly known as Riopel Marine Inc. and changed its name to Vision Marine Technologies Inc. in April 2020. Vision Marine Technologies Inc. was founded in 1995 and is headquartered in Boisbriand, Canada.