CompoSecure (NASDAQ:CMPO) & Energy Recovery (NASDAQ:ERII) Head to Head Analysis

CompoSecure (NASDAQ:CMPO) and Energy Recovery (NASDAQ:ERII) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Volatility & Risk

CompoSecure has a beta of 0.98, indicating that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Energy Recovery has a beta of 0.89, indicating that its stock price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares CompoSecure and Energy Recovery”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CompoSecure	$160.68 million	9.23	-$53.72 million	($2.16)	-5.43
Energy Recovery	$134.99 million	2.75	$22.96 million	$0.28	25.75

Energy Recovery has lower revenue, but higher earnings than CompoSecure. CompoSecure is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Energy Recovery, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares CompoSecure and Energy Recovery’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CompoSecure	-24.53%	-65.50%	26.83%
Energy Recovery	12.72%	8.25%	7.24%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for CompoSecure and Energy Recovery, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CompoSecure	0	0	2	0	3.00
Energy Recovery	1	3	0	0	1.75

CompoSecure presently has a consensus price target of $22.00, suggesting a potential upside of 87.55%. Energy Recovery has a consensus price target of $11.67, suggesting a potential upside of 61.79%. Given CompoSecure’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe CompoSecure is more favorable than Energy Recovery.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

37.6% of CompoSecure shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 83.6% of Energy Recovery shares are owned by institutional investors. 52.1% of CompoSecure shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.5% of Energy Recovery shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

CompoSecure beats Energy Recovery on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CompoSecure

CompoSecure, Inc. manufactures and designs metal, composite, and proprietary financial transaction cards in the United States and internationally. Its primary metal form factors include embedded, metal veneer lite, metal veneer, and full metal products. The company also offers Arculus Cold Storage Wallet, a three-factor authentication solution, which supports specific digital assets, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, non-fungible tokens and others. In addition, it offers Payments + Arculus Secure Authenticate, white-labeled cold storage wallet, Payments + Arculus Cold Storage, and Payments + Arculus Authentication + Arculus Cold Storage. The company serves financial institutions, plastic card manufacturers, system integrators, and security specialists. CompoSecure, Inc. was founded in 1910 and is based in Somerset, New Jersey.

About Energy Recovery

Energy Recovery, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells energy efficiency technology solutions in the Americas, the Middle East, Africa, Asia, and Europe. The company operates through Water and Emerging Technologies segments. The company offers high and low pressure, and ultra pressure exchangers; AT and LPT hydraulic turbochargers; and high-pressure feed and circulation booster pumps for use in seawater and brackish desalination, and wastewater treatment. It also provides PX G1300, which reduces energy consumption and operating costs of carbon dioxide-based refrigeration systems; and spare parts, as well as repair, field, and commissioning services. It sells its products under the ERI, PX, Pressure Exchanger, PX Pressure Exchanger, Ultra PX, PX G, PX G1300, PX PowerTrain, AT, and Aquabold brands to original equipment manufacturers, supermarket chains, cold storage facilities, refrigeration system installers, and other industrial users; aftermarket customers consisting of desalination plant owners and operators; and project developers, end-users, and industry consultants, as well as engineering, procurement, and construction firms. Energy Recovery, Inc. was incorporated in 1992 and is headquartered in San Leandro, California.