Head-To-Head Comparison: ZipLink (OTCMKTS:ZIPL) and Sohu.com (NASDAQ:SOHU)

Sohu.com (NASDAQ:SOHU) and ZipLink (OTCMKTS:ZIPL) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, profitability and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Sohu.com and ZipLink’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sohu.com	67.44%	20.67%	13.84%
ZipLink	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Sohu.com and ZipLink”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Sohu.com	$584.33 million	0.83	-$100.27 million	$14.08	1.15
ZipLink	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

ZipLink has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Sohu.com.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

33.0% of Sohu.com shares are owned by institutional investors. 21.1% of Sohu.com shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 57.5% of ZipLink shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Sohu.com and ZipLink, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sohu.com	0	1	2	0	2.67
ZipLink	0	0	0	0	0.00

Sohu.com currently has a consensus price target of $20.00, indicating a potential upside of 23.29%. Given Sohu.com’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Sohu.com is more favorable than ZipLink.

Summary

Sohu.com beats ZipLink on 8 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Sohu.com

Sohu.com Limited engages in the provision of online media, video, and game products and services on personal computers (PCs) and mobile devices in China. It operates through two segments: Sohu and Changyou. The company offers online news, information, and content services through the mobile phone application Sohu News APP, mobile portal m.sohu.com, and www.sohu.com for PCs; and online video content and services through mobile phone application Sohu Video APP and tv.sohu.com, as well as ifox, a video application for PC. It also operates Focus (www.focus.cn), which provides online real estate information and services; and 17173.com website, which provides news, electronic forums, online videos, and other online game information services to game players, as well as offers mobile game distribution services. In addition, the company offers interactive online games for PCs and mobile devices. Further, it provides paid subscription and interactive broadcasting services. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Beijing, China.

About ZipLink

This record represents the public shell of ZipLink, Inc. In November 2000, ZipLink, Inc. suspended its operations and announced the lay off of substantially all of its employees except those necessary to wind down operations. Ziplink, Inc. operated as a wholesale connectivity provider in North America for the Business-to-Business marketplace, including Internet service providers, competitive local exchange carriers, Web appliance vendors, and PC manufacturers and distributors, as of September 30, 2000. ZipLink also offered a range of Internet connectivity services for Internet appliances, including Internet access and subscriber authentication. The company was founded in 1995 and is based in Lowell, Massachusetts.