Acorn Energy (NASDAQ:ACFN – Get Free Report) and AEye (NASDAQ:LIDR – Get Free Report) are both small-cap technology companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, risk and dividends.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Acorn Energy and AEye, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Acorn Energy | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| AEye | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
AEye has a consensus price target of $3.50, suggesting a potential upside of 307.78%. Given AEye’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe AEye is more favorable than Acorn Energy.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
21.6% of AEye shares are held by institutional investors. 35.6% of Acorn Energy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 11.9% of AEye shares are held by company 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.
Profitability
This table compares Acorn Energy and AEye’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Acorn Energy | 16.12% | 10.06% | 6.32% |
| AEye | -7,786.44% | -42.98% | -38.52% |
Volatility and Risk
Acorn Energy has a beta of 0.31, suggesting that its stock price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, AEye has a beta of 2.7, suggesting that its stock price is 170% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Earnings and Valuation
This table compares Acorn Energy and AEye”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Acorn Energy | $11.48 million | 4.01 | $2.51 million | $0.61 | 30.05 |
| AEye | $450,000.00 | 89.02 | -$33.96 million | ($0.87) | -0.99 |
Acorn Energy has higher revenue and earnings than AEye. AEye is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Acorn Energy, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Acorn Energy beats AEye on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Acorn Energy
Acorn Energy, Inc., through its subsidiaries, develops and markets wireless remote monitoring and control systems for various markets in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Power Generation (PG) Monitoring and Cathodic Protection (CP) Monitoring. The PG segment provides wireless remote monitoring and control systems, and services for critical assets, which include stand-by power generators, compressors, pumps, pumpjacks, light towers, turbines, and other industrial equipment; and Internet of Things applications. The CP segment offers remote monitoring of cathodic protection systems on gas pipelines for gas utilities and pipeline companies. The company was incorporated in 1986 and is based in Wilmington, Delaware.
About AEye
AEye, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides lidar systems for vehicle autonomy, advanced driver-assistance systems, and robotic vision applications in the United States, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. It offers 4Sight intelligent sensing lidar platform, including 4Sight at Design, Triggered 4Sight, Responsive 4Sight, and Predictive 4Sight; and 4Sight for automotive and industrial market. The company was formerly known as CF Finance Acquisition Corp. III and changed its name to AEye, Inc. in August 2021. AEye, Inc. was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Dublin, California.
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