Playtika (NASDAQ:PLTK) & IMAX (NYSE:IMAX) Critical Review

Playtika (NASDAQ:PLTK) and IMAX (NYSE:IMAX) are both communication services companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

11.9% of Playtika shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.5% of IMAX shares are held by institutional investors. 5.7% of Playtika shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 20.6% of IMAX shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Playtika and IMAX”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Playtika	$2.76 billion	0.38	-$206.40 million	($0.73)	-3.74
IMAX	$410.21 million	6.58	$34.88 million	$2.31	21.18

IMAX has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Playtika. Playtika is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than IMAX, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Playtika has a beta of 1.08, suggesting that its share price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, IMAX has a beta of 0.54, suggesting that its share price is 46% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Playtika and IMAX, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Playtika	1	3	2	0	2.17
IMAX	0	3	10	2	2.93

Playtika currently has a consensus price target of $3.35, indicating a potential upside of 22.71%. IMAX has a consensus price target of $58.08, indicating a potential upside of 18.71%. Given Playtika’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Playtika is more favorable than IMAX.

Profitability

This table compares Playtika and IMAX’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Playtika	-9.84%	-67.84%	7.88%
IMAX	27.70%	35.15%	17.83%

Summary

IMAX beats Playtika on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Playtika

Playtika Holding Corp. develops and publishes free-to-play mobile games, with a focus on social casino and casual gaming. Its games are available on mobile devices and online, and generate revenue primarily through in-game purchases and advertising. Its portfolio includes titles such as Slotomania, Caesars Slots, Bingo Blitz and June’s Journey. Playtika was founded in 2010 and has expanded its portfolio through acquisitions, including the 2018 purchase of German game developer Wooga. Founded in Israel, Playtika serves players in markets around the world.

About IMAX

IMAX Corporation develops and operates technology and services for premium large-format cinema. Its offerings include specialized projection and sound systems, theater design and installation, and tools for remastering films for presentation on IMAX screens. The company also works with filmmakers and studios to release movies in the IMAX format, and it distributes documentary and feature-film content to its theater network. IMAX systems are used in commercial cinemas and in select educational and institutional venues.