Financial Contrast: Allient (NASDAQ:ALNT) vs. Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU)

Allient (NASDAQ:ALNT) and Cohu (NASDAQ:COHU) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Allient and Cohu’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Allient	4.19%	15.85%	5.99%
Cohu	9.75%	11.46%	8.84%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

61.2% of Allient shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 88.2% of Cohu shares are held by institutional investors. 16.5% of Allient shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.8% of Cohu shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Allient and Cohu’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Allient	$502.99 million	1.06	$17.39 million	$1.45	22.71
Cohu	$812.78 million	2.08	$96.85 million	$1.51	23.48

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for Allient and Cohu, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Allient	0	0	0	0	N/A
Cohu	1	1	6	0	2.63

Cohu has a consensus target price of $43.38, indicating a potential upside of 22.32%. Given Cohu’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Cohu is more favorable than Allient.

Volatility & Risk

Allient has a beta of 1.55, indicating that its stock price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cohu has a beta of 1.58, indicating that its stock price is 58% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Cohu beats Allient on 11 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Allient

Allient Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, manufactures, and sells precision and specialty controlled motion components and systems for various industries worldwide. It offers brush and brushless DC motors, brushless servo and torque motors, coreless DC motors, integrated brushless motor-drives, gearmotors, gearing, modular digital servo drives, motion controllers, optical encoders, active and passive filters, input/output modules, industrial communications gateways, light-weighting technologies, and other controlled motion-related products. The company sells its products to end customers and original equipment manufacturers in vehicle, medical, aerospace and defense, and industrial markets through direct sales force, authorized manufacturers' representatives, and distributors. The company was formerly known as Allied Motion Technologies Inc. and changed its name to Allient Inc. in August 2023. Allient Inc. was incorporated in 1962 and is headquartered in Amherst, New York.

About Cohu

Cohu, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides semiconductor test equipment and services in China, the United States, Taiwan, Malaysia, the Philippines, and internationally. The company supplies semiconductor test and inspection handlers, micro-electromechanical system (MEMS) test modules, test contactors, thermal sub-systems, and semiconductor automated test equipment for semiconductor manufacturers and test subcontractors. It also provides semiconductor automated test equipment for wafer level and device package testing; various test handlers, including pick-and-place, turret, gravity, strip, and MEMS and thermal sub-systems; interface products comprising test contactors, and probe heads and pins; spares and kits; various parts and labor warranties on test and handling systems, and instruments; and training on the maintenance and operation of its systems, as well as application, data management software, and consulting services on its products. In addition, the company offers data analytics product that includes DI-Core, a software suite used to optimize Cohu equipment performance, which provides real-time online performance monitoring and process control. It markets its products through direct sales force and independent sales representatives. The company was formerly known as Cohu Electronics, Inc. and changed its name to Cohu, Inc. in 1972. Cohu, Inc. was incorporated in 1947 and is headquartered in Poway, California.