Comparing Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) & Solar Energy Initiatives (OTCMKTS:SNRY)

Solar Energy Initiatives (OTCMKTS:SNRY) and Kulicke and Soffa Industries (NASDAQ:KLIC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability and valuation.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

0.1% of Solar Energy Initiatives shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.2% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Kulicke and Soffa Industries shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Solar Energy Initiatives and Kulicke and Soffa Industries’ top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Solar Energy Initiatives	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Kulicke and Soffa Industries	$742.49 million	3.52	$57.15 million	($1.19)	-39.64

Kulicke and Soffa Industries has higher revenue and earnings than Solar Energy Initiatives.

Risk and Volatility

Solar Energy Initiatives has a beta of 1.6, meaning that its stock price is 60% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a beta of 1.4, meaning that its stock price is 40% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Solar Energy Initiatives and Kulicke and Soffa Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Solar Energy Initiatives	N/A	N/A	N/A
Kulicke and Soffa Industries	-8.94%	2.22%	1.73%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Solar Energy Initiatives and Kulicke and Soffa Industries, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Solar Energy Initiatives	0	0	0	0	N/A
Kulicke and Soffa Industries	0	2	1	0	2.33

Kulicke and Soffa Industries has a consensus target price of $53.50, indicating a potential upside of 13.42%. Given Kulicke and Soffa Industries’ higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Kulicke and Soffa Industries is more favorable than Solar Energy Initiatives.

Summary

Kulicke and Soffa Industries beats Solar Energy Initiatives on 7 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Solar Energy Initiatives

Solar Energy Initiatives, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, markets and sells solar power products, systems, and services in the United States and the Caribbean. The company primarily designs, markets, and sells solar power systems for residential and commercial customers; and designs, markets, sells, owns, and operates solar power systems for municipal and commercial customers, as well as designs, develops, and manages solar parks. Its products include photovoltaic panels, photovoltaic roofing systems, solar thermal products, balance of system products, and management system products. The company was formerly known as NP Capital Corp. and changed its name to Solar Energy Initiatives, Inc. in September 2008. Solar Energy Initiatives, Inc. was founded in 2006 and is based in Cary, North Carolina.

About Kulicke and Soffa Industries

Kulicke and Soffa Industries, Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells capital equipment and tools used to assemble semiconductor devices. It operates through four segments: Ball Bonding Equipment, Wedge Bonding Equipment, Advanced Solutions, and Aftermarket Products and Services (APS). The company offers ball bonding equipment, wafer level bonding equipment, wedge bonding equipment; and advanced display, die-attach, and thermocompression systems and solutions, as well as tools, spares and services for equipment. It also services, maintains, repairs, and upgrades equipment. The company serves semiconductor device manufacturers, integrated device manufacturers, outsourced semiconductor assembly and test providers, other electronics manufacturers, industrial manufacturers, foundry service providers, and automotive electronics suppliers primarily in the United States and the Asia/Pacific region. The company was founded in 1951 and is headquartered in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania.