Data I/O (NASDAQ:DAIO) versus CTS (NYSE:CTS) Head to Head Contrast

CTS (NYSE:CTS) and Data I/O (NASDAQ:DAIO) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, risk, valuation, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

96.9% of CTS shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 37.0% of Data I/O shares are held by institutional investors. 1.6% of CTS shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.6% of Data I/O shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares CTS and Data I/O”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CTS	$541.32 million	2.63	$65.32 million	$2.19	22.61
Data I/O	$21.50 million	1.12	-$4.99 million	($0.54)	-4.74

CTS has higher revenue and earnings than Data I/O. Data I/O is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CTS, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

CTS has a beta of 0.88, meaning that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Data I/O has a beta of 1.09, meaning that its stock price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for CTS and Data I/O, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CTS	0	1	0	0	2.00
Data I/O	2	0	2	1	2.40

Data I/O has a consensus target price of $5.11, indicating a potential upside of 99.61%. Given Data I/O’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Data I/O is more favorable than CTS.

Profitability

This table compares CTS and Data I/O’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CTS	12.07%	12.14%	8.56%
Data I/O	-23.19%	-29.44%	-20.97%

Summary

CTS beats Data I/O on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CTS

CTS Corporation manufactures and sells sensors, actuators, and connectivity components in North America, Europe, and Asia. The company provides encoders, rotary position sensors, slide potentiometers, industrial and commercial rotary potentiometers. It also provides non-contacting, and contacting pedals; and eBrake pedals. In addition, the company offers flow meters, hydrophones, non-destructive testing, sonar, ultrasonic imaging, piezoelectric materials, piezoelectric sense products, and bulk products. Further, it provides eMobility, chassis, current sensors, clutch, brake, position sensors, stroke sensor, seating, speed, throttle, transmission, turbo, temperature sensors, and technical related products. Additionally, the company offers DIP, rotary selector, tactile, rotary DIP, and toggle switches, as well as provides transducer related products. Furthermore, it provides EMI, RFI, and RFI products; specialty and resistors; and frequency control products. The company sells and markets its products through its sales engineers, independent manufacturer representatives, and distributors. CTS Corporation was founded in 1896 and is based in Lisle, Illinois.

About Data I/O

Data I/O Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the design, manufacture, and sale of programming and security deployment systems and services for electronic device manufacturers in the United States, Europe, and internationally. Its programming system products are used to program integrated circuits (ICs) with the specific data for the ICs. The company offers PSV handlers off-line automated programming systems, such as PSV2800 automated programming system which focuses on high-volume manufacturing in a lower cost platform; PSV7000 automated programming system for security deployment upgrades; PSV5000 automated programming system that combines mid-range capacity and supports security deployment; and PSV3500 automated programming system which provides basic programming needs. It also provides SentriX security deployment system; and LumenX and non-automated FlashPAK III programming systems. In addition, the company offers hardware support, system installation and repair, and device programming services. It markets and sells its products to original equipment manufacturers in automotive and consumer electronics, internet of things, and industrial, as well as electronic manufacturing service contract manufacturers through direct sales, and indirect sales representatives and distributors. Data I/O Corporation was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in Redmond, Washington.