Critical Review: The Coretec Group (OTCMKTS:CRTG) and Universal Electronics (NASDAQ:UEIC)

The Coretec Group (OTCMKTS:CRTG) and Universal Electronics (NASDAQ:UEIC) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for The Coretec Group and Universal Electronics, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
The Coretec Group	0	0	0	0	0.00
Universal Electronics	1	2	0	0	1.67

Universal Electronics has a consensus target price of $5.75, indicating a potential upside of 40.24%. Given Universal Electronics’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Universal Electronics is more favorable than The Coretec Group.

Profitability

This table compares The Coretec Group and Universal Electronics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
The Coretec Group	N/A	N/A	N/A
Universal Electronics	-5.54%	0.41%	0.21%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

79.4% of Universal Electronics shares are owned by institutional investors. 63.1% of The Coretec Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 17.1% of Universal Electronics shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares The Coretec Group and Universal Electronics”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
The Coretec Group	N/A	N/A	-$2.31 million	N/A	N/A
Universal Electronics	$368.29 million	0.14	-$18.60 million	($1.50)	-2.73

The Coretec Group has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Universal Electronics.

Volatility & Risk

The Coretec Group has a beta of -1.55, indicating that its share price is 255% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Universal Electronics has a beta of 1.22, indicating that its share price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Universal Electronics beats The Coretec Group on 7 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About The Coretec Group

The Coretec Group Inc. engages in the development of silicon anode active materials for lithium-ion batteries and cyclohexasilane for electric vehicles, cleantech, and tech applications. The company was founded in 2002 and is headquartered in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

About Universal Electronics

Universal Electronics Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, ships, and supports control and sensor technology solutions in the United States, the People’s Republic of China, rest of Asia, Europe, Latin America, and internationally. The company offers voice-enabled automatically-programmed universal two-way radio frequency, as well as infrared remote controls to video service providers, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), retailers, and private label customers; wall-mount and handheld thermostat controllers and connected accessories for smart energy management systems to OEM customers, hotels, hospitality, and system integrators; proprietary and standards-based RF sensors for residential security, safety, and home automation applications; and integrated circuits on which its software and universal device control database is embedded to OEMs, video service providers, and private label customers. It also provides software, firmware and technology solutions that can enable devices such as Smart TVs, hybrid set-top boxes, audio systems, smart speakers, game consoles, and other consumer electronic and smart home devices to wirelessly connect and interoperate within home networks; cloud-services that support its embedded software and hardware solutions; intellectual property that the company licenses to OEMs and video service providers; embedded and cloud-enabled software for firmware update provisioning and digital rights management validation services to consumer electronics brands; and AV accessories, including universal remote controls, television wall mounts and stands, and digital television antennas. In addition, the company QuickSet, a software application that can be embedded in entertainment or smart home platform or can be delivered as a cloud-based service, through QuickSet Cloud, to enable universal device setup, interoperability, and control. Universal Electronics Inc. was incorporated in 1986 and is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.