Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) & Asia Pacific Wire & Cable (NASDAQ:APWC) Head-To-Head Analysis

Asia Pacific Wire & Cable (NASDAQ:APWC) and Powell Industries (NASDAQ:POWL) are both industrials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Risk and Volatility

Asia Pacific Wire & Cable has a beta of 0.64, suggesting that its share price is 36% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Powell Industries has a beta of 1.25, suggesting that its share price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Asia Pacific Wire & Cable and Powell Industries”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Asia Pacific Wire & Cable	$489.68 million	0.05	$3.67 million	$0.28	4.09
Powell Industries	$1.10 billion	4.56	$180.75 million	$5.21	26.53

Powell Industries has higher revenue and earnings than Asia Pacific Wire & Cable. Asia Pacific Wire & Cable is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Powell Industries, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

1.0% of Asia Pacific Wire & Cable shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.8% of Powell Industries shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Asia Pacific Wire & Cable shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.2% of Powell Industries shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Asia Pacific Wire & Cable and Powell Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Asia Pacific Wire & Cable	1.28%	2.16%	1.35%
Powell Industries	16.49%	27.51%	15.94%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Asia Pacific Wire & Cable and Powell Industries, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Asia Pacific Wire & Cable	1	0	0	0	1.00
Powell Industries	0	3	2	2	2.86

Powell Industries has a consensus price target of $187.92, suggesting a potential upside of 35.96%. Given Powell Industries’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Powell Industries is more favorable than Asia Pacific Wire & Cable.

Summary

Powell Industries beats Asia Pacific Wire & Cable on 15 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Asia Pacific Wire & Cable

Asia Pacific Wire & Cable Corporation Limited (NASDAQ: APWC) is a holding company that operates through subsidiaries engaged in the manufacture, distribution and sale of wire and cable products. Its offerings primarily serve telecommunications, electrical power, construction and industrial applications. The company’s product portfolio includes copper-based power cables, building wires, telecommunications cables, enameled wires, bare copper conductors and other specialty wire and cable products.

About Powell Industries

Powell Industries designs, manufactures and services custom-engineered electrical equipment and systems used to distribute, control and monitor electrical power. Its offerings include electrical switchgear, control rooms and integrated power-control systems for industrial and utility applications. The company serves customers in industries such as oil and gas, petrochemicals, utilities, mining and transportation. Its equipment is used in facilities including power plants, refineries and other energy and industrial sites, in North America and international markets.