Head to Head Survey: Forward Industries (NASDAQ:FWDI) versus StoneCo (NASDAQ:STNE)

StoneCo (NASDAQ:STNE) and Forward Industries (NASDAQ:FWDI) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends and valuation.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares StoneCo and Forward Industries”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
StoneCo	$2.53 billion	0.96	$425.73 million	$2.48	3.96
Forward Industries	$18.19 million	26.59	-$166.97 million	$0.12	54.58

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

Volatility and Risk

StoneCo has a beta of 1.75, indicating that its stock price is 75% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Forward Industries has a beta of 0.88, indicating that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

73.2% of StoneCo shares are owned by institutional investors. 11.3% of StoneCo shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 15.9% of Forward Industries shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares StoneCo and Forward Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
StoneCo	22.92%	22.19%	4.10%
Forward Industries	-2,073.82%	-18.05%	-17.03%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for StoneCo and Forward Industries, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
StoneCo	0	6	4	0	2.40
Forward Industries	1	1	3	0	2.40

StoneCo currently has a consensus target price of $14.30, indicating a potential upside of 45.62%. Forward Industries has a consensus target price of $8.50, indicating a potential upside of 29.77%. Given StoneCo’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe StoneCo is more favorable than Forward Industries.

Summary

StoneCo beats Forward Industries on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About StoneCo

StoneCo Ltd. provides financial technology and software solutions to merchants and integrated partners to conduct electronic commerce across in-store, online, and mobile channels in Brazil. It distributes its solutions, principally through proprietary Stone Hubs, which offer hyper-local sales and services; and sells solutions to brick-and-mortar and digital merchants through sales team. The company served small-and-medium-sized businesses; and marketplaces, e-commerce platforms, and integrated software vendors. StoneCo Ltd. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in George Town, the Cayman Islands.

About Forward Industries

Forward Industries, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, markets, and distributes carry and protective solutions primarily for handheld electronic devices. The company operates in three segments: OEM Distribution, Retail Distribution, and Design. The OEM Distribution segment sources and distributes carrying cases and other accessories for medical monitoring and diagnostic kits; and various portable electronic and non-electronic products, such as sporting and recreational products, bar code scanners, GPS devices, tablets, and firearms. The Retail Distribution segment sources and sells smart-enabled furniture and a range of other products through agreements with various retailers, including in stores and online retailer websites. The Design segment provides hardware and software product design and engineering services. The company sells its products to original equipment manufacturers in the Asia-Pacific, the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. Forward Industries, Inc. was incorporated in 1961 and is headquartered in Hauppauge, New York.