Head to Head Review: PC Connection (NASDAQ:CNXN) versus Hesai Group (NASDAQ:HSAI)

PC Connection (NASDAQ:CNXN) and Hesai Group (NASDAQ:HSAI) are both mid-cap technology companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and institutional ownership.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares PC Connection and Hesai Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PC Connection	$2.87 billion	0.81	$83.72 million	$3.78	24.44
Hesai Group	$3.34 billion	0.67	$62.33 million	$0.41	38.80

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

Risk and Volatility

PC Connection has a beta of 0.81, indicating that its stock price is 19% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hesai Group has a beta of 1.36, indicating that its stock price is 36% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares PC Connection and Hesai Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PC Connection	3.21%	10.90%	7.29%
Hesai Group	14.77%	5.52%	4.47%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for PC Connection and Hesai Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PC Connection	0	1	1	0	2.50
Hesai Group	0	1	2	1	3.00

Hesai Group has a consensus target price of $23.50, suggesting a potential upside of 47.71%. Given Hesai Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Hesai Group is more favorable than PC Connection.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

42.8% of PC Connection shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 48.5% of Hesai Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 56.6% of PC Connection shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Hesai Group beats PC Connection on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PC Connection

PC Connection, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides a range of information technology (IT) solutions. The company operates through three segments: Business Solutions, Enterprise Solutions, and Public Sector Solutions. It offers IT products, such as computer systems, software and peripheral equipment, networking communications, and other products and accessories. The company also provides services comprising design, configuration, and implementation of IT solutions. In addition, publishes Connected, a quarterly publication that provides informative articles on the latest technologies and industry trends; distributes specialty catalogs to education, healthcare, and government customers; and MacConnection that publishes a catalog for the Apple market. The company markets its products and services through its Websites, such as connection.com, connection.com/enterprise, connection.com/publicsector, and macconnection.com. It serves small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) comprising small office/home offices customers; government and educational institutions; and medium-to-large corporate accounts through outbound telemarketing and field sales and marketing programs targeted to specific customer populations, as well as through digital, Web, and print media advertising. PC Connection, Inc. was founded in 1982 and is headquartered in Merrimack, New Hampshire.

About Hesai Group

Hesai Group, through with its subsidiaries, engages in the development, manufacture, and sale of three-dimensional light detection and ranging solutions (LiDAR). Its LiDAR products are used in passenger and commercial vehicles with advanced driver assistance systems; autonomous passenger and freight mobility services; and other applications, such as delivery robots, street sweeping robots, and logistics robots in restricted areas. Hesai Group was founded in 2014 and is based in Shanghai, China.