Horizon Technology Finance (NASDAQ:HRZN) and UBS Group (NYSE:UBS) Head to Head Contrast

Horizon Technology Finance (NASDAQ:HRZN) and UBS Group (NYSE:UBS) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, risk, dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

4.9% of Horizon Technology Finance shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Horizon Technology Finance shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of UBS Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Horizon Technology Finance has a beta of 1, meaning that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, UBS Group has a beta of 1.19, meaning that its stock price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Horizon Technology Finance and UBS Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Horizon Technology Finance	1	5	1	0	2.00
UBS Group	2	4	6	0	2.33

Horizon Technology Finance presently has a consensus price target of $4.65, suggesting a potential upside of 22.69%. UBS Group has a consensus price target of $60.30, suggesting a potential upside of 22.11%. Given Horizon Technology Finance’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Horizon Technology Finance is more favorable than UBS Group.

Profitability

This table compares Horizon Technology Finance and UBS Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Horizon Technology Finance	-57.42%	10.31%	4.59%
UBS Group	13.36%	10.77%	0.58%

Dividends

Horizon Technology Finance pays an annual dividend of $0.72 per share and has a dividend yield of 19.0%. UBS Group pays an annual dividend of $0.35 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Horizon Technology Finance pays out -96.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. UBS Group pays out 11.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. UBS Group has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Horizon Technology Finance is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Horizon Technology Finance and UBS Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Horizon Technology Finance	-$40.43 million	-6.11	-$2.66 million	($0.75)	-5.05
UBS Group	$52.28 billion	2.95	$7.77 billion	$3.03	16.30

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

Summary

UBS Group beats Horizon Technology Finance on 12 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Horizon Technology Finance

Horizon Technology Finance Corporation is a specialty finance company that provides loans and growth capital to venture capital-backed businesses, particularly companies in the development and expansion stages. The company focuses on sectors including technology, life sciences, healthcare information and services, and sustainability. Its financing products primarily include secured loans, and it may also receive warrants or other equity-related interests as part of its investments. Horizon operates in the United States and is externally managed by Horizon Technology Finance Management LLC.

About UBS Group

UBS Group AG is a Swiss financial services company providing wealth management, banking, asset management and investment banking services to individuals, businesses, institutions and governments. It has a strong presence in Switzerland and serves clients in markets around the world. The company’s businesses include Global Wealth Management, Swiss Personal & Corporate Banking, Asset Management and the Investment Bank. Its services include financial planning and investment advice, lending and deposit products, portfolio and fund management, and capital markets and advisory services.