SkyWater Technology (NASDAQ:SKYT – Get Free Report) and nLight (NASDAQ:LASR – 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 dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, profitability and earnings.
Profitability
This table compares SkyWater Technology and nLight’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| SkyWater Technology | -2.60% | -8.52% | -1.70% |
| nLight | -26.80% | -22.23% | -17.54% |
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares SkyWater Technology and nLight”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| SkyWater Technology | $342.27 million | 1.52 | -$6.79 million | ($0.17) | -63.56 |
| nLight | $205.69 million | 4.74 | -$60.79 million | ($1.13) | -17.43 |
SkyWater Technology has higher revenue and earnings than nLight. SkyWater Technology is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than nLight, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Volatility and Risk
SkyWater Technology has a beta of 3.4, meaning that its stock price is 240% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, nLight has a beta of 2.33, meaning that its stock price is 133% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of recent ratings for SkyWater Technology and nLight, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| SkyWater Technology | 0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 3.00 |
| nLight | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 3.00 |
SkyWater Technology presently has a consensus price target of $11.67, suggesting a potential upside of 7.97%. nLight has a consensus price target of $17.70, suggesting a potential downside of 10.15%. Given SkyWater Technology’s higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe SkyWater Technology is more favorable than nLight.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
70.0% of SkyWater Technology shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.9% of nLight shares are owned by institutional investors. 37.9% of SkyWater Technology shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.7% of nLight shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
SkyWater Technology beats nLight on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About SkyWater Technology
SkyWater Technology, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a pure-play technology foundry that engages in the provision of semiconductor development, manufacturing, and packaging services in the United States. The company offers engineering and process development support services to co-create technologies with customers; and semiconductor manufacturing services for various silicon-based analog and mixed-signal, micro-electromechanical systems, and rad-hard integrated circuits. It serves customers operating in the computation, aerospace and defense, automotive, bio-health, consumer, and industrial sectors. The company was incorporated in 2016 and is headquartered in Bloomington, Minnesota.
About nLight
nLIGHT, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and sells semiconductor and fiber lasers for industrial, microfabrication, and aerospace and defense applications. The company operates in two segments, Laser Products and Advanced Development. It offers semiconductor lasers with various ranges of power levels, wavelengths, and output fiber sizes; and programmable and serviceable fiber lasers for use in industrial and aerospace and defense applications. The company also provides laser sensors, including light detection and ranging technologies for intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance applications; and fiber amplifiers, beam combination, and control systems for use in high-energy laser systems in directed energy applications. It sells its products through direct sales force in the United States, China, South Korea, and European countries, as well as through independent sales representatives and distributors in Asia, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and South America. The company was formerly known as nLight Photonics Corporation and changed its name to nLIGHT, Inc. in January 2016. nLIGHT, Inc. was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Camas, Washington.
Receive News & Ratings for SkyWater Technology Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for SkyWater Technology and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
