Reviewing QuickLogic (NASDAQ:QUIK) & SCI Engineered Materials (OTCMKTS:SCIA)

QuickLogic (NASDAQ:QUIK) and SCI Engineered Materials (OTCMKTS:SCIA) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and valuation.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares QuickLogic and SCI Engineered Materials”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
QuickLogic	$20.11 million	5.43	-$3.84 million	($0.47)	-14.15
SCI Engineered Materials	$22.87 million	0.85	$1.86 million	$0.32	13.25

SCI Engineered Materials has higher revenue and earnings than QuickLogic. QuickLogic is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SCI Engineered Materials, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for QuickLogic and SCI Engineered Materials, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
QuickLogic	1	0	3	1	2.80
SCI Engineered Materials	0	0	0	0	0.00

QuickLogic currently has a consensus target price of $10.87, indicating a potential upside of 63.41%. Given QuickLogic’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe QuickLogic is more favorable than SCI Engineered Materials.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

31.5% of QuickLogic shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 27.6% of SCI Engineered Materials shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of QuickLogic shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 19.7% of SCI Engineered Materials 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.

Volatility and Risk

QuickLogic has a beta of 0.76, indicating that its stock price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SCI Engineered Materials has a beta of 0.75, indicating that its stock price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares QuickLogic and SCI Engineered Materials’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
QuickLogic	-40.36%	-27.35%	-13.58%
SCI Engineered Materials	9.13%	11.23%	9.05%

Summary

SCI Engineered Materials beats QuickLogic on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About QuickLogic

QuickLogic Corporation operates as a fabless semiconductor company in the United States. The company offers embedded FPGA intellectual property, low power, multicore semiconductor system-on-chips, discrete FPGAs, and AI software; and end-to-end artificial intelligence/machine learning solution with accurate sensor algorithms using AI technology. It provides various platforms, such as software tools and eFPGA IP enables the adoption of AI, voice, and sensor processing across aerospace, and defense, consumer/industrial IOT, and consumer electronics markets. In addition, the company engages in the eFPGA IP Licensing business consisting of development and integration of eFPGA technology into custom semiconductor solutions. Further, the company offers silicon products, such as EOS, QuickAI, ArcticLink III, PolarPro 3, PolarPro II, PolarPro, and Eclipse II products; and PASIC 3 and QuickRAM, as well as programming hardware and design software services. The company markets and sells its products to defense industrial base contractors, U.S. government entities, system OEMs, and fabless semiconductor companies through a network of sales managers and distributors in North America, Europe, and the Asia Pacific. It has a strategic partnership with YorChip to develop low-power unified chiplet interconnect express FPGA chiplets. The company was founded in 1988 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

About SCI Engineered Materials

SCI Engineered Materials, Inc. engages in the manufacture and supply of materials for physical vapor deposition thin film applications in the United States. It offers ceramic targets, metal sputtering targets, and backing plates for use in semiconductors, thin film solar, flat panel displays, defense, aerospace, and photonics industries. The company’s materials are used to produce nano layers of metals and oxides for advanced material systems; and in applying decorative coatings for end uses, such as sink faucets to produce various electronic, photonic, and semiconductor products. It serves domestic and multi-national corporations, universities, and research institutions. The company was formerly known as Superconductive Components, Inc. and changed its name to SCI Engineered Materials, Inc. in 2007. SCI Engineered Materials, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Columbus, Ohio.