ESS Tech (NYSE:GWH – Get Free Report) and Bel Fuse (NASDAQ:BELFA – Get Free Report) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and risk.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
46.8% of ESS Tech shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 6.0% of Bel Fuse shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.7% of ESS Tech shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of Bel Fuse shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Risk and Volatility
ESS Tech has a beta of 1.43, meaning that its stock price is 43% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Bel Fuse has a beta of 1.21, meaning that its stock price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| ESS Tech | 1 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Bel Fuse | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3.00 |
ESS Tech currently has a consensus target price of $2.88, suggesting a potential upside of 37.23%. Bel Fuse has a consensus target price of $115.00, suggesting a potential downside of 23.87%. Given ESS Tech’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe ESS Tech is more favorable than Bel Fuse.
Profitability
This table compares ESS Tech and Bel Fuse’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| ESS Tech | -1,045.28% | -592.34% | -125.15% |
| Bel Fuse | 10.04% | 21.18% | 8.77% |
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares ESS Tech and Bel Fuse”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| ESS Tech | $6.30 million | 6.52 | -$86.22 million | ($5.10) | -0.41 |
| Bel Fuse | $534.79 million | 3.58 | $40.96 million | $4.93 | 30.64 |
Bel Fuse has higher revenue and earnings than ESS Tech. ESS Tech is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Bel Fuse, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Bel Fuse beats ESS Tech on 10 of the 14 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 Bel Fuse
Bel Fuse Inc. designs, manufactures, markets, and sells products that power, protect, and connect electronic circuits. The company's products are used in the networking, telecommunications, computing, general industrial, high-speed data transmission, military, commercial aerospace, transportation, and e-Mobility industries. It provides power solutions and protection products, including front-end power supplies, board-mount power products, industrial and transportation power products, external power products, and circuit protection products. The company also offers connectivity solutions, such as expanded beam fiber optic connectors, cable assemblies, and active optical devices; copper-based connectors/cable assemblies; radio frequency connectors, cable assemblies, microwave devices, and low loss cables; and ethernet, I/O, and industrial and power connectivity products. In addition, it provides magnetic solutions comprising integrated connector modules, power transformers, SMD power inductors and SMPS transformers, and ethernet discrete components. The company sells its products through direct strategic account managers, regional sales managers working with independent sales representative organizations, and authorized distributors in the United States, the People's Republic of China, Macao, the United Kingdom, Slovakia, Germany, India, Switzerland, and internationally. Bel Fuse Inc. was incorporated in 1949 and is headquartered in West Orange, New Jersey.
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