Comparing ICTS International (OTCMKTS:ICTSF) and Lakeland Industries (NASDAQ:LAKE)

Lakeland Industries (NASDAQ:LAKE) and ICTS International (OTCMKTS:ICTSF) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, institutional ownership and earnings.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

71.7% of Lakeland Industries shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of Lakeland Industries shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 62.4% of ICTS International shares are held by company 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 & Earnings

This table compares Lakeland Industries and ICTS International”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lakeland Industries	$167.21 million	0.53	-$18.08 million	($4.39)	-2.06
ICTS International	$483.31 million	0.27	-$4.23 million	N/A	N/A

ICTS International has higher revenue and earnings than Lakeland Industries.

Volatility & Risk

Lakeland Industries has a beta of 1.29, indicating that its share price is 29% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ICTS International has a beta of 0.74, indicating that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Lakeland Industries and ICTS International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lakeland Industries	-19.41%	-7.80%	-5.08%
ICTS International	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Lakeland Industries and ICTS International, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lakeland Industries	2	1	2	0	2.00
ICTS International	0	0	0	0	0.00

Lakeland Industries currently has a consensus target price of $16.50, indicating a potential upside of 82.72%. Given Lakeland Industries’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Lakeland Industries is more favorable than ICTS International.

About Lakeland Industries

Lakeland Industries, Inc. manufactures and sells industrial protective clothing and accessories for the industrial and public protective clothing market worldwide. It offers firefighting and heat protective apparel to protect against fire; high-end chemical protective suits to provide protection from highly concentrated, toxic and/or lethal chemicals, and biological toxins; and limited use/disposable protective clothing, such as coveralls, laboratory coats, shirts, pants, hoods, aprons, sleeves, arm guards, caps, and smocks. The company provides durable woven garments, including electrostatic dissipative apparel used in electronics clean rooms; flame resistant meta aramid, para aramid, and FR cotton coveralls/pants/jackets used in petrochemical, refining operations, and electrical utilities; FR fabrics; and cotton and polycotton coveralls, lab coats, pants, and shirts. In addition, it provides high visibility clothing comprising reflective apparel, including vests, T-shirts, sweatshirts, jackets, coats, raingear, jumpsuits, hats, and gloves; and gloves and sleeves that are used in the automotive, glass, and metal fabrication industries. The company sells its products to a network of safety and industrial supply distributors through in-house sales teams, customer service group, and independent sales representatives. It serves end users, such as integrated oil, chemical/petrochemical, automobile, steel, glass, construction, smelting, cleanroom, janitorial, pharmaceutical, and high technology electronics manufacturers, as well as scientific, medical laboratories, and the utilities industry; and federal, state, and local governmental agencies and departments. Lakeland Industries, Inc. was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Huntsville, Alabama.

About ICTS International

ICTS International N.V. provides airport security and other aviation services, and authentication technology services in the Netherlands, Germany, the United States, Spain, and internationally. It offers aviation security services, including security screening, behavior detection on crowds and queues, perimeter guarding/ patrolling, CCTV surveillance and/or alarm resolution, and vehicle marshalling. It also provides above wing security services, such as security interviewing, behavior detection, and escort of valuables and weapons; and handling services. In addition, it offers below wing services, comprising ramp and door guarding, interior and exterior searches, catering and bag room guarding, and selectee search; cargo security services, which include cargo screening, explosives detection dogs, access control, and vehicle marshalling services; private charter flight and cargo security screening, catering and aircraft Security Screening, aircraft search, and employee screening services; general security services, which comprise security search and screening, access control, perimeter guarding/patrolling, security host and reception, and CCTV surveillance and/or alarm resolution services; and training/consulting/auditing services. Further, it offers aviation security technology, including New Advanced Passenger Screening, an IT-system that enables pre-departure analysis of passenger information, and X-Check and I-Check that supports airline staff, security or filtering agents with customer processing; SaaS for identity verification and fraud prevention from physical and digital ID documents; and non-security services, such as agent services, guard services, queue monitors, aircraft cleaning, janitorial, skycap passengers luggage, wheelchair attendant, baggage handling, cruise line baggage transfer, VIP meet and greet services, equipment for passengers, and shuttle services to airline crews. The company was founded in 1982 and is based in Schiphol, the Netherlands.