ESS Tech (NYSE:GWH – Get Free Report) and Hayward (NYSE:HAYW – Get Free Report) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and profitability.
Volatility and Risk
ESS Tech has a beta of 1.46, suggesting that its stock price is 46% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hayward has a beta of 1.13, suggesting that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
46.8% of ESS Tech shares are held by institutional investors. 1.7% of ESS Tech shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.1% of Hayward shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Profitability
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| ESS Tech | -1,045.28% | -1,141.31% | -140.58% |
| Hayward | 13.51% | 11.27% | 5.59% |
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for ESS Tech and Hayward, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| ESS Tech | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Hayward | 0 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 3.00 |
ESS Tech currently has a consensus target price of $2.50, suggesting a potential upside of 122.22%. Hayward has a consensus target price of $19.25, suggesting a potential upside of 45.34%. Given ESS Tech’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe ESS Tech is more favorable than Hayward.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares ESS Tech and Hayward”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| ESS Tech | $1.58 million | 19.35 | -$63.44 million | ($4.33) | -0.26 |
| Hayward | $1.12 billion | 2.56 | $151.57 million | $0.68 | 19.48 |
Hayward has higher revenue and earnings than ESS Tech. ESS Tech is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hayward, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Hayward beats ESS Tech on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About ESS Tech
ESS Tech, Inc., an energy storage company, designs and produces iron flow batteries for commercial and utility-scale energy storage applications worldwide. It offers energy storage products, which include Energy Warehouse, a behind-the-meter solution; and Energy Center, a front-of-the-meter solution. The company was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Wilsonville, Oregon.
About Hayward
Hayward Holdings, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets a portfolio of pool equipment and associated automation systems in North America, Europe, and internationally. The company offers pool equipment, including pumps, filters, robotics, suction and pressure cleaners, gas heaters and heat pumps, water features and landscape lighting, water sanitizers, salt chlorine generators, safety equipment, and in-floor automated cleaning systems, as well as LED illumination solutions. It sells its products through specialty distributors, retailers, and buying groups. The company was founded in 1925 and is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina.
Receive News & Ratings for ESS Tech Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for ESS Tech and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
