Critical Contrast: ASE Technology (NYSE:ASX) and First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR)

ASE Technology (NYSE:ASX) and First Solar (NASDAQ:FSLR) are both large-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, profitability and risk.

Volatility & Risk

ASE Technology has a beta of 1.16, indicating that its share price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, First Solar has a beta of 1.42, indicating that its share price is 42% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for ASE Technology and First Solar, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ASE Technology	0	2	1	0	2.33
First Solar	0	5	19	0	2.79

ASE Technology currently has a consensus price target of $7.84, indicating a potential downside of 0.95%. First Solar has a consensus price target of $234.72, indicating a potential upside of 70.30%. Given First Solar’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe First Solar is more favorable than ASE Technology.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

7.6% of ASE Technology shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 82.1% of First Solar shares are held by institutional investors. 22.9% of ASE Technology shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of First Solar shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares ASE Technology and First Solar’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ASE Technology	$22.52 billion	0.77	$2.00 billion	$0.57	13.88
First Solar	$2.62 billion	5.62	-$44.17 million	$4.42	31.18

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

Profitability

This table compares ASE Technology and First Solar’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ASE Technology	6.34%	12.41%	5.47%
First Solar	14.99%	8.35%	5.67%

Summary

First Solar beats ASE Technology on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ASE Technology

ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, provides semiconductors packaging and testing, and electronic manufacturing services in the United States, Taiwan, Asia, Europe, and internationally. It develops, constructs, sells, leases, and manages real estate properties; produces substrates; offers information software, equipment leasing, investment advisory, and warehousing management services; processes and sells computer and communication peripherals, electronic components, telecommunications equipment, and motherboards; and imports and exports goods and technology. ASE Technology Holding Co., Ltd. was founded in 1984 and is headquartered in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.

About First Solar

First Solar, Inc. provides photovoltaic (PV) solar energy solutions in the United State, Japan, France, Canada, India, Australia, and internationally. The company designs, manufactures, and sells cadmium telluride solar modules that converts sunlight into electricity. It serves developers and operators of systems, utilities, independent power producers, commercial and industrial companies, and other system owners. The company was formerly known as First Solar Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to First Solar, Inc. in 2006. First Solar, Inc. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Tempe, Arizona.