Analyzing Paltalk (NASDAQ:PALT) and ASAP (NASDAQ:WTRH)

ASAP (NASDAQ:WTRH) and Paltalk (NASDAQ:PALT) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, dividends, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

26.3% of ASAP shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.9% of Paltalk shares are held by institutional investors. 14.2% of ASAP shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 18.7% of Paltalk shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares ASAP and Paltalk”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ASAP	$130.00 million	0.00	-$5.23 million	($1.03)	N/A
Paltalk	$9.64 million	1.64	-$1.07 million	($0.34)	-5.03

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

Profitability

This table compares ASAP and Paltalk’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ASAP	-131.13%	-52.13%	-19.80%
Paltalk	-33.40%	-16.94%	-14.15%

Risk & Volatility

ASAP has a beta of 0.57, indicating that its share price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Paltalk has a beta of 0.91, indicating that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for ASAP and Paltalk, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ASAP	0	0	0	0	0.00
Paltalk	0	1	0	0	2.00

Paltalk has a consensus target price of $4.50, suggesting a potential upside of 163.16%. Given Paltalk’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Paltalk is more favorable than ASAP.

Summary

Paltalk beats ASAP on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ASAP

ASAP, Inc. operates an online ordering technology platform in the United States. Its platform allows to order food, alcohol, convenience, grocery, flowers, auto parts, and others. The company's platform also facilitates access to third parties that provide payment processing solutions for restaurants and other merchants. As of June 30, 2022, it had approximately 27,000 restaurants in approximately 1,000 cities. The company was formerly known as Waitr Holdings Inc. and changed its name to ASAP, Inc. in August 2022. ASAP, Inc. was founded in 2013 and is headquartered in Lafayette, Louisiana.

About Paltalk

Paltalk, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops communications software and multimedia social applications worldwide. It offers consumer applications, which include Paltalk, Camfrog, and Tinychat for live video chat; and owns and operates Vumber, a telecommunications services provider that enables users to have multiple phone numbers in any area code through which calls can be forwarded to a user’s existing cell phone or land line telephone number. The company provides ManyCam, a live streaming software and virtual camera that allows users to deliver professional live videos on streaming platforms, video conferencing applications, and distance learning tools; and product payment options, where users can pay by credit card, PayPal, western union, check, local e-wallet providers, or complete an in-app purchase through the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for Android users. The company was formerly known as PeerStream, Inc. and changed its name to Paltalk, Inc. in May 2020. Paltalk, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is based in Jericho, New York.