Critical Comparison: Mistras Group (NYSE:MG) and Flux Power (NASDAQ:FLUX)

Mistras Group (NYSE:MG) and Flux Power (NASDAQ:FLUX) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, valuation, risk and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Mistras Group and Flux Power’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mistras Group	1.64%	9.37%	3.54%
Flux Power	-10.05%	N/A	-17.70%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Mistras Group and Flux Power”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mistras Group	$702.45 million	0.45	$18.96 million	$0.37	27.15
Flux Power	$66.43 million	1.56	-$6.67 million	($0.40)	-15.35

Mistras Group has higher revenue and earnings than Flux Power. Flux Power is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Mistras Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

74.9% of Mistras Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 38.0% of Flux Power shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.8% of Mistras Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 26.0% of Flux Power shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Mistras Group has a beta of 1.27, indicating that its stock price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Flux Power has a beta of 1.91, indicating that its stock price is 91% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Mistras Group and Flux Power, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mistras Group	0	1	0	0	2.00
Flux Power	1	0	2	1	2.75

Flux Power has a consensus price target of $6.00, indicating a potential downside of 2.28%. Given Flux Power’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Flux Power is more favorable than Mistras Group.

Summary

Mistras Group beats Flux Power on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mistras Group

Mistras Group, Inc. provides technology-enabled asset protection solutions in the United States, other Americas, Europe, and the Asia-Pacific. The company offers non-destructive testing services; inline inspection for pipelines; and plant condition management software. It also provides maintenance and light mechanical services, such as corrosion removal, mitigation and prevention, insulation installation and removal, electrical, heat tracing, industrial cleaning, pipefitting, and welding; engineering consulting services primarily for process equipment, technologies, and facilities; and utilizes scaffolding and rope access to access at-height and confined assets. In addition, the company offers certified divers for subsea inspection and maintenance; unmanned aerial, land-based, and subsea systems for inspection applications; online condition-monitoring solutions; quality assurance and quality control solutions for new and existing metal and alloy components, materials, and composites. Further, it builds monitoring systems, as well as provides inspection, maintenance, monitoring and data services; and Web-based solutions. Additionally, the company designs, manufactures, and sells acoustic emission sensors, instruments, and turnkey systems for monitoring and testing materials, pressure components, processes, and structures; and ultrasonic testing equipment. It serves oil and gas, aerospace and defense, fossil and nuclear power, power generation and transmission, civil infrastructure, manufacturing, industrial, public infrastructure, petrochemical, transportation, and other process industries, as well as infrastructure, research, and engineering industries. Mistras Group, Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Princeton Junction, New Jersey.

About Flux Power

Flux Power Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiary Flux Power, Inc., designs, develops, manufactures, and sells lithium-ion energy storage solutions for lift trucks, airport ground support equipment, and other industrial and commercial applications in the North America. It offers battery management system (BMS) that provides cell balancing, charging, discharging, monitoring, and communication between the pack and the forklift. The company also provides 24-volt onboard chargers for its Class 3 Walkie pallet packs; and smart wall mounted chargers to interface with its BMS. It sells its products directly to small companies and end-users, as well as through original equipment manufacturers, lift equipment dealers, and battery distributors. The company is headquartered in Vista, California.