Financial Survey: Sono-Tek (NASDAQ:SOTK) versus Atomera (NASDAQ:ATOM)

Atomera (NASDAQ:ATOM) and Sono-Tek (NASDAQ:SOTK) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability and valuation.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

30.8% of Atomera shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 47.9% of Sono-Tek shares are owned by institutional investors. 8.1% of Atomera shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of Sono-Tek shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

Atomera has a beta of 2.04, indicating that its share price is 104% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sono-Tek has a beta of -0.03, indicating that its share price is 103% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Atomera and Sono-Tek’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Atomera	N/A	-84.79%	-75.99%
Sono-Tek	8.64%	9.52%	7.45%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Atomera and Sono-Tek, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Atomera	1	0	0	0	1.00
Sono-Tek	0	2	0	0	2.00

Sono-Tek has a consensus price target of $8.50, indicating a potential upside of 60.68%. Given Sono-Tek’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Sono-Tek is more favorable than Atomera.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Atomera and Sono-Tek”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Atomera	$60,000.00	5,808.00	-$20.17 million	($0.65)	-13.85
Sono-Tek	$20.91 million	3.97	$1.81 million	$0.11	48.09

Sono-Tek has higher revenue and earnings than Atomera. Atomera is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Sono-Tek, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Sono-Tek beats Atomera on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Atomera

Atomera Incorporated engages in the developing, commercializing, and licensing proprietary processes and technologies for the semiconductor industry in North America and the Asia Pacific. The company's lead technology is the Mears Silicon Technology, a thin film of reengineered silicon that can be applied as a transistor channel enhancement to CMOS-type transistors. Its customers include foundries, integrated device manufacturers, fabless semiconductor manufacturers, original equipment manufacturers, and electronic design automation companies. The company was formerly known as Mears Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to Atomera Incorporated in January 2016. Atomera Incorporated was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Los Gatos, California.

About Sono-Tek

Sono-Tek Corporation designs and manufactures ultrasonic coating systems for applying on parts and components for the microelectronics/electronics, alternative energy, medical, industrial, and research and development/other markets worldwide. The company also designs and manufactures custom-engineered ultrasonic coating systems; and provides nozzles and generators for manufacturers' equipment. Its products include integrated multi-axis coating systems, integrated coating systems, fluxing systems, OEM systems, and other related systems. In addition, the company provides surface coating solutions and application consulting services. It markets and distributes its products through direct sales personnel, select independent distributors, and sales representatives. The company was incorporated in 1975 and is based in Milton, New York.