Contrasting Skillsoft (NYSE:SKIL) and Hitek Global (NASDAQ:HKIT)

Skillsoft (NYSE:SKIL) and Hitek Global (NASDAQ:HKIT) are both small-cap business services companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk and profitability.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Skillsoft and Hitek Global”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Skillsoft	$512.67 million	0.09	-$139.82 million	($16.28)	-0.33
Hitek Global	$6.54 million	0.22	$180,000.00	N/A	N/A

Hitek Global has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Skillsoft.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Skillsoft and Hitek Global, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Skillsoft	1	1	0	0	1.50
Hitek Global	1	0	0	0	1.00

Profitability

This table compares Skillsoft and Hitek Global’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Skillsoft	-27.27%	112.12%	2.30%
Hitek Global	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider and Institutional Ownership

87.0% of Skillsoft shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 1.2% of Hitek Global shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.2% of Skillsoft shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Skillsoft has a beta of 2.23, meaning that its share price is 123% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hitek Global has a beta of 0.78, meaning that its share price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Skillsoft beats Hitek Global on 7 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Skillsoft

Skillsoft Corp. provides content and platform and instructor-led training services in the United States and internationally. The company's Content & Platform segment engages in the sale, marketing, and delivery of its content learning solutions in areas, such as leadership and business, technology and developer, and compliance comprising individualized coaching, as well as technical skill areas. This segment also offers Percipio, an AI-driven online learning platform that delivers a learning experience through SaaS solutions. Its Instructor-Led Training segment provides training solutions, including information technology and business skills for corporations and their employees by guiding its customers throughout their lifelong technology learning journey by offering relevant and up-to-date skills training through instructor-led and self-paced, vendor certified, and other proprietary offerings. The company markets and sells their offerings to businesses of many sizes, government agencies, educational institutions, and resellers. Skillsoft Corp. is headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado.

About Hitek Global

Hitek Global Inc. provides information technology (IT) consulting and solutions to small and medium businesses in various industry sectors in China. It offers anti-counterfeiting tax control system (ACTCS) tax devices, including golden tax disk and printers, ACTCS services, and IT services; and sells software and hardware to large businesses, such as laptops, printers, desktop computers, and related accessories, as well as Internet servers, cameras, and monitors. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Xiamen, China.