Analyzing Kubient (NASDAQ:KBNT) & NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT)

NetScout Systems (NASDAQ:NTCT) and Kubient (NASDAQ:KBNT) 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, dividends, risk, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

91.6% of NetScout Systems shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 18.3% of Kubient shares are held by institutional investors. 3.6% of NetScout Systems shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 22.3% of Kubient shares are held by company 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 NetScout Systems and Kubient’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
NetScout Systems	7.53%	5.71%	4.15%
Kubient	-1,064.79%	-67.58%	-58.67%

Volatility and Risk

NetScout Systems has a beta of 0.75, suggesting that its stock price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kubient has a beta of 2.68, suggesting that its stock price is 168% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for NetScout Systems and Kubient, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
NetScout Systems	0	1	0	0	2.00
Kubient	0	0	0	0	N/A

NetScout Systems presently has a consensus target price of $30.00, indicating a potential upside of 46.77%. Kubient has a consensus target price of $1.50, indicating a potential upside of 566.67%. Given Kubient’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Kubient is more favorable than NetScout Systems.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares NetScout Systems and Kubient’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
NetScout Systems	$914.53 million	1.59	$59.65 million	$0.90	22.71
Kubient	$2.40 million	1.38	-$13.62 million	($0.87)	-0.26

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

Summary

NetScout Systems beats Kubient on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About NetScout Systems

NetScout Systems, Inc. provides service assurance and cybersecurity solutions for protect digital business services against disruptions in the United States, Europe, Asia, and internationally. The company offers nGeniusONE management software that enables customers to predict, preempt, and resolve network and service delivery problems, as well as facilitate the optimization and capacity planning of their network infrastructures; and specialized platforms and analytic modules that enable its customers to analyze and troubleshoot traffic in radio access and Wi-Fi networks. It also provides nGeniusPULSE, an active testing tool that enables enterprises to identify infrastructure performance issues and determine application availability, reliability, and performance; and nGenius Business Analytics solution, which enables service providers to analyze their network traffic. In addition, the company offers ISNG, an advanced passive network probe; packet flow systems that deliver targeted network traffic access to various monitoring and security tools and systems; and a suite of test access points that enable non-disruptive access to network traffic. Further, it provides cybersecurity solutions to protect their networks against distributed denial of service attacks under the Arbor brand, such as Arbor Sightline, Arbor Threat Mitigation System, Arbor Insight, Arbor Edge Defense, and Arbor Cloud. Additionally, the company offers advanced threat detection solutions, such as Omnis Cyber Investigator. It serves enterprise customers in various industries, including financial services, technology, manufacturing, healthcare, utilities, education, transportation, and retail; mobile operators, wireline operators, cable operators, Internet service providers, and cloud providers; and governmental agencies through a direct sales force, and indirect reseller and distribution channels. The company was incorporated in 1984 and is headquartered in Westford, Massachusetts.

About Kubient

Kubient, Inc. develops a cloud-based software platform for digital advertising industry. It develops Audience Marketplace, a platform for real-time trading of digital, programmatic advertising. The company's platform allows advertisers and publishers the ability to use machine learning during programmatic advertising inventory auction. The company was incorporated in 2017 and is based in New York, New York.