Head to Head Comparison: LightPath Technologies (NASDAQ:LPTH) & Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT)

Novanta (NASDAQ:NOVT) and LightPath Technologies (NASDAQ:LPTH) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, earnings, risk and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Novanta and LightPath Technologies, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Novanta	1	2	0	0	1.67
LightPath Technologies	1	1	4	0	2.50

Novanta presently has a consensus price target of $133.00, indicating a potential upside of 32.14%. LightPath Technologies has a consensus price target of $9.13, indicating a potential upside of 35.79%. Given LightPath Technologies’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe LightPath Technologies is more favorable than Novanta.

Volatility and Risk

Novanta has a beta of 1.54, meaning that its share price is 54% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, LightPath Technologies has a beta of 1.18, meaning that its share price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Novanta 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
Novanta	$960.31 million	3.75	$64.09 million	$1.47	68.47
LightPath Technologies	$43.86 million	6.96	-$14.87 million	($0.39)	-17.23

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

Profitability

This table compares Novanta and LightPath Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Novanta	6.41%	14.70%	7.88%
LightPath Technologies	-39.92%	-53.40%	-18.17%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

98.3% of Novanta shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 56.3% of LightPath Technologies shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of Novanta shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 24.8% of LightPath Technologies shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Novanta beats LightPath Technologies on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Novanta

Novanta, Inc. engages in the provision of core technology solutions to healthcare and advanced industrial original equipment manufacturers. It operates through the following segments: Photonics, Vision, and Precision Motion. The Photonics segment designs, manufactures, and markets photonics-based solutions, including laser scanning and laser beam delivery, CO2 laser, continuous wave and ultrafast laser, and optical light engine products. The Vision segment offers a range of medical grade technologies, including medical insufflators, pumps and related disposables, surgical displays and operating room integration technologies, optical data collection and machine vision technologies, radio frequency identification technologies, thermal printers, spectrometry technologies, and embedded touch screen solutions. The Precision Motion segment includes optical encoders, precision motor and motion control technology, air bearing spindles, and precision machined components to customers. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Bedford, MA.

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.