Ascent Solar Technologies (NASDAQ:ASTI) and Netlist (OTCMKTS:NLST) Head to Head Review

Netlist (OTCMKTS:NLST) and Ascent Solar Technologies (NASDAQ:ASTI) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, risk, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Volatility and Risk

Netlist has a beta of 1.11, indicating that its stock price is 11% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ascent Solar Technologies has a beta of 2.47, indicating that its stock price is 147% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Netlist and Ascent Solar Technologies, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Netlist	0	0	1	0	3.00
Ascent Solar Technologies	0	0	0	0	0.00

Netlist currently has a consensus price target of $2.00, indicating a potential upside of 140.96%. Given Netlist’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Netlist is more favorable than Ascent Solar Technologies.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Netlist and Ascent Solar Technologies”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Netlist	$69.21 million	3.26	-$60.40 million	($0.22)	-3.77
Ascent Solar Technologies	$44,673.00	76.23	-$17.07 million	N/A	N/A

Ascent Solar Technologies has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Netlist.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.0% of Netlist shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 10.6% of Ascent Solar Technologies shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.7% of Netlist shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Ascent Solar Technologies shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Netlist and Ascent Solar Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Netlist	-37.19%	-852.20%	-94.11%
Ascent Solar Technologies	-28,235.93%	-1,360.73%	-157.70%

Summary

Netlist beats Ascent Solar Technologies on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Netlist

Netlist, Inc. designs, manufactures, and markets memory subsystems for the server, high-performance computing, and communications markets in the United States and internationally. The company portfolio of proprietary technologies and design techniques, includes efficient planar design, alternative packaging techniques, and custom semiconductor logic, to deliver memory subsystems; and sells specialty memory modules and flash-based products for use in data center and industrial applications. It resells component products, including solid state drive (SSD), NAND flash, and dual inline memory module (DIMM) to storage customers, appliance customers, system builders, and cloud and datacenter customers; and sells component inventory to distributors and other users of memory integrated circuits. The company markets and sells its products through a direct sales force and a network of independent sales representatives. Netlist, Inc. was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.

About Ascent Solar Technologies

Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc., a solar technology company, engages in the manufacture and sale of photovoltaic solar modules in the United States. The company markets and sells its products through OEMs, system integrators, distributors, retailers, and value-added resellers. It serves agrivoltaics, aerospace, satellites, near earth orbiting vehicles, and fixed wing unmanned aerial vehicles. Ascent Solar Technologies, Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Thornton, Colorado.