Contrasting ASE Technology (NYSE:ASX) & Entegris (NASDAQ:ENTG)

ASE Technology (NYSE:ASX) and Entegris (NASDAQ:ENTG) are both large-cap technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, dividends, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares ASE Technology and Entegris’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ASE Technology	9.77%	18.97%	7.40%
Entegris	11.14%	13.86%	6.77%

Dividends

ASE Technology pays an annual dividend of $0.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.8%. Entegris pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. ASE Technology pays out 28.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Entegris pays out 15.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

6.8% of ASE Technology shares are owned by institutional investors. 22.9% of ASE Technology shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Entegris shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for ASE Technology and Entegris, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ASE Technology	0	0	1	1	3.50
Entegris	1	1	12	1	2.87

Entegris has a consensus target price of $187.17, suggesting a potential upside of 21.23%. Given Entegris’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Entegris is more favorable than ASE Technology.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares ASE Technology and Entegris”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ASE Technology	$20.73 billion	4.26	$1.28 billion	$1.07	36.89
Entegris	$3.20 billion	7.38	$235.60 million	$2.56	60.31

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

Volatility and Risk

ASE Technology has a beta of 1.79, meaning that its stock price is 79% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Entegris has a beta of 1.39, meaning that its stock price is 39% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

ASE Technology beats Entegris on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ASE Technology

ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides semiconductors packaging and testing, and electronic manufacturing services in the United States, Taiwan, Asia, Europe, and internationally. It develops, constructs, sells, leases, and manages real estate properties; produces substrates; offers information software, equipment leasing, investment advisory, and warehousing management services; commercial complex, after-sales, and support services; manages parking lot services; processes and sells computer and communication peripherals, electronic components, telecommunications equipment, and motherboards; and imports and exports goods and technology. ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. was founded in 1984 and is based in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

About Entegris

Entegris, Inc. develops, manufactures, and supplies microcontamination control products, specialty chemicals, and advanced materials handling solutions in North America, Taiwan, China, South Korea, Japan, Europe, and Southeast Asia. It operates in three segments: Materials Solutions (MS); Microcontamination Control (MC); and Advanced Materials Handling (AMH). The MC segment solutions to purify critical liquid chemistries and process gases used in semiconductor manufacturing processes and other high-technology industries; integrated circuit chemical mechanical polishing solutions, high-performance etch and clean chemistries, gases and materials, and safe and materials delivery systems. The MS segment provides materials-based solutions, such as chemical mechanical planarization slurries, pads, deposition materials, process chemistries and gases, formulated cleans, etchants, and other specialty materials. The Advanced Materials Handling segment develops solutions for customers' yields by protecting critical materials during manufacturing, transportation, and storage, which include monitor, protect, transport and deliver critical liquid chemistries, wafers, and other substrates for semiconductor, life sciences and other high-technology industries. The company's customers include logic and memory semiconductor device manufacturers, semiconductor equipment makers, gas and chemical manufacturing companies, and wafer grower companies; and flat panel display equipment makers, panel manufacturers, and manufacturers of hard disk drive components and devices, as well as their related ecosystems. It serves manufacturers and suppliers in the solar and life science industries, electrical discharge machining customers, glass and glass container manufacturers, aerospace manufacturers, and manufacturers of biomedical implantation devices. Entegris, Inc. was founded in 1966 and is headquartered in Billerica, Massachusetts.