Reviewing Lotus Technology (NASDAQ:LOT) and Lightning eMotors (NYSE:ZEV)

Lotus Technology (NASDAQ:LOT) and Lightning eMotors (NYSE:ZEV) are both small-cap auto/tires/trucks companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership and risk.

Volatility & Risk

Lotus Technology has a beta of 0.13, suggesting that its share price is 87% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lightning eMotors has a beta of 2.69, suggesting that its share price is 169% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Lotus Technology and Lightning eMotors’ revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lotus Technology	$679.01 million	0.57	-$742.00 million	($0.84)	-6.86
Lightning eMotors	$24.69 million	0.00	$15.17 million	($11.19)	0.00

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

63.4% of Lotus Technology shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.2% of Lightning eMotors shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.2% of Lotus Technology shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 3.7% of Lightning eMotors shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Lotus Technology and Lightning eMotors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lotus Technology	N/A	N/A	-41.65%
Lightning eMotors	-221.51%	-221.78%	-69.89%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Lotus Technology and Lightning eMotors, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lotus Technology	0	1	0	0	2.00
Lightning eMotors	0	0	0	0	N/A

Lotus Technology currently has a consensus price target of $7.00, indicating a potential upside of 19.66%. Given Lotus Technology’s higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Lotus Technology is more favorable than Lightning eMotors.

Summary

Lotus Technology beats Lightning eMotors on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lotus Technology

Lotus Technology Inc. engages in the design, development, and sale of battery electric lifestyle vehicles worldwide. It also distributes sports cars. The company sells its products under the Lotus brand. Lotus Technology Inc. is based in Shanghai, China.

About Lightning eMotors

Lightning eMotors, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells zero-emission commercial fleet vehicles and powertrains to commercial fleets, large enterprises, original equipment manufacturers, and governments in the United States. It offers zero-emission class 3 to 7 commercial electric and fuel cell vehicles. The company's vehicles comprise cargo and passenger vehicles, school buses, ambulances, shuttle buses, work trucks, transit buses, and motorcoaches. It also offers charging systems and charging infrastructure solutions. The company was founded in 2008 and is based in Loveland, Colorado.