Cadence Design Systems (NASDAQ:CDNS) vs. ImageWare Systems (OTCMKTS:IWSY) Financial Contrast

Cadence Design Systems (NASDAQ:CDNS) and ImageWare Systems (OTCMKTS:IWSY) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Cadence Design Systems and ImageWare Systems’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cadence Design Systems	20.35%	30.13%	15.97%
ImageWare Systems	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Cadence Design Systems and ImageWare Systems, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cadence Design Systems	1	3	14	0	2.72
ImageWare Systems	0	0	0	0	0.00

Cadence Design Systems currently has a consensus price target of $376.00, suggesting a potential upside of 19.39%. Given Cadence Design Systems’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Cadence Design Systems is more favorable than ImageWare Systems.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

84.8% of Cadence Design Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 2.2% of ImageWare Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.0% of Cadence Design Systems shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 37.7% of ImageWare Systems shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Cadence Design Systems and ImageWare Systems”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cadence Design Systems	$5.21 billion	16.45	$1.06 billion	$3.88	81.17
ImageWare Systems	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Cadence Design Systems has higher revenue and earnings than ImageWare Systems.

Summary

Cadence Design Systems beats ImageWare Systems on 8 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Cadence Design Systems

Cadence Design Systems, Inc. provides software, hardware, services, and reusable integrated circuit (IC) design blocks worldwide. The company offers functional verification services, including emulation and prototyping hardware. Its functional verification offering consists of JasperGold, a formal verification platform; Xcelium, a parallel logic simulation platform; Palladium, an enterprise emulation platform; and Protium, a prototyping platform for chip verification. The company also provides digital IC design and sign off products, including Genus synthesis and Joules RTL power solutions, as well as Modus DFT software solution to reduce systems-on-chip design-for-test time; physical implementation tools, such as place and route, optimization, and multiple patterning preparation; and Innovus implementation system, a physical implementation system. In addition, it offers custom IC design and simulation products to create schematic and physical representations of circuits down to the transistor level for analog, mixed-signal, custom digital, memory, and radio frequency designs; and system design and analysis products to develop printed circuit boards and IC packages, as well as to analyze electromagnetic, electro-thermal, and other multi-physics effects. Further, the company provides intellectual property (IP) products comprising pre-verified and customizable functional blocks to integrate into customer's ICs; and verification IP with memory models to emulate and model the expected behavior and interaction of standard industry system interface protocols. Additionally, it offers services related to methodology, education, and hosted design solutions, as well as technical support and maintenance services. The company serves consumer, hyperscale computing, 5G communications, mobile, automotive, aerospace and defense, industrial, and life science industries. Cadence Design Systems, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

About ImageWare Systems

ImageWare Systems, Inc. operates as a biometric solution provider in the United States and internationally. It offers Imageware Biometric Engine, a biometric identity and authentication database built for multi-biometric enrollment, management, and authentication. The company also provides Imageware Proof that enables an entity to prove user identity from their biometrics, government issued ID, and credit bureau data; Imageware Capture that enables the capture of biographic and biometric details, such as face, fingerprint, palm print, and iris, as well as scars, marks, and tattoos; Imageware Identify, which enables a user to identify others from their biometrics; and Imageware Investigate that enables an officer to create digital lineups. In addition, it offers Imageware Credential that enables a user to design, build, and print badges for access control systems, which includes tickets, smart badges, wristbands, personal identity verification cards, and others; Imageware Digital ID, a decentralized identity service that enables self-sovereign identity underpinned by blockchain technology tied to biometrics; and Imageware Authenticate, which enables users to leverage multimodal biometrics hosted in a central server or cloud to log in to services and applications from a device. Further, the company provides Law Enforcement 2.0 solution which enables state, local, and federal agencies to capture, archive, search, retrieve, and share digital images, fingerprints, and other biometrics, as well as criminal history records on a stand-alone, networked, wireless or browser-based platform. It serves airports and seaports, education, financial, government, healthcare, and law enforcement industries. The company was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in San Diego, California.