Critical Comparison: nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) versus Navitas Semiconductor (NASDAQ:NVTS)

Navitas Semiconductor (NASDAQ:NVTS) and nLight (NASDAQ:LASR) are both mid-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation, dividends, risk, profitability and institutional ownership.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Navitas Semiconductor and nLight”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Navitas Semiconductor	$83.30 million	27.86	-$84.60 million	($0.64)	-15.73
nLight	$198.55 million	10.24	-$60.79 million	($0.88)	-45.48

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

46.1% of Navitas Semiconductor shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.9% of nLight shares are owned by institutional investors. 29.9% of Navitas Semiconductor shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 4.7% of nLight shares are owned by company 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 Navitas Semiconductor and nLight’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Navitas Semiconductor	-220.85%	-14.86%	-13.13%
nLight	-19.13%	-17.11%	-12.81%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Navitas Semiconductor and nLight, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Navitas Semiconductor	2	5	2	0	2.00
nLight	1	1	7	1	2.80

Navitas Semiconductor presently has a consensus price target of $6.48, indicating a potential downside of 35.62%. nLight has a consensus price target of $34.29, indicating a potential downside of 14.33%. Given nLight’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe nLight is more favorable than Navitas Semiconductor.

Risk & Volatility

Navitas Semiconductor has a beta of 3.16, suggesting that its stock price is 216% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, nLight has a beta of 2.33, suggesting that its stock price is 133% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

nLight beats Navitas Semiconductor on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Navitas Semiconductor

Navitas Semiconductor Corporation designs, develops, and markets gallium nitride power integrated circuits, silicon carbide, associated high-speed silicon system controllers, and digital isolators used in power conversion and charging. The company’s products are used in mobile, consumer, data center, solar, electric vehicle, industrial motor drive, smart grid, and transportation applications. It operates in the United States, Europe, China, rest of Asia, and internationally. The company was founded in 2013 and is based in Torrance, California.

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.