Head to Head Review: Extreme Networks (NASDAQ:EXTR) vs. Westell Technologies (OTCMKTS:WSTL)

Westell Technologies (OTCMKTS:WSTL) and Extreme Networks (NASDAQ:EXTR) are both technology companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability and earnings.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for Westell Technologies and Extreme Networks, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Westell Technologies	0	0	0	0	0.00
Extreme Networks	1	1	7	0	2.67

Extreme Networks has a consensus target price of $32.25, suggesting a potential upside of 41.20%. Given Extreme Networks’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Extreme Networks is more favorable than Westell Technologies.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

10.9% of Westell Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.0% of Extreme Networks shares are held by institutional investors. 24.6% of Westell Technologies shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.6% of Extreme Networks shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Westell Technologies and Extreme Networks”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Westell Technologies	$29.96 million	3.19	-$10.10 million	($0.56)	-10.80
Extreme Networks	$1.28 billion	2.32	$42.12 million	$0.31	73.68

Extreme Networks has higher revenue and earnings than Westell Technologies. Westell Technologies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Extreme Networks, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Westell Technologies has a beta of 0.97, indicating that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Extreme Networks has a beta of 1.79, indicating that its share price is 79% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Westell Technologies and Extreme Networks’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Westell Technologies	-30.99%	-18.79%	-15.09%
Extreme Networks	3.28%	88.88%	6.32%

Summary

Extreme Networks beats Westell Technologies on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Westell Technologies

Westell Technologies, Inc., through its subsidiary, Westell, Inc., designs and distributes telecommunications products to telephone companies in the United States. The company operates through three segments: In-Building Wireless (IBW), Intelligent Site Management (ISM), and Communications Network Solutions (CNS). The IBW segment offers distributed antenna system conditioners; digital repeaters; battery backup units; and system components and antennas, including couplers, duplexers, splitters, filters, and tappers for commercial and public safety in-building wireless systems. The ISM segment provides a suite of remote units, which provide machine-to-machine communications that enable operators to remotely monitor, manage, and control site infrastructure and support systems. The CNS segment provides a range of indoor and outdoor network infrastructure, such as integrated cabinets, power distribution products, copper and fiber connectivity products, and T1 network interface units. The company serves wireless and wireline service providers, multiple systems operators, Internet service providers, systems integrators, neutral host operators, and distributors through field sales organization, distributors, and partners. Westell Technologies, Inc. was founded in 1980 and is headquartered in Aurora, Illinois.

About Extreme Networks

Extreme Networks, Inc. delivers cloud-driven networking solutions that leverage the powers of machine learning, artificial intelligence, analytics, and automation.
The company designs, develops, and manufactures wired and wireless network infrastructure equipment and develops the software for network management, policy, analytics, security, and access controls. Over 50,000 customers globally trust their end-to-end, cloud-driven networking solutions and rely on our top-rated services and support to accelerate their digital transformation efforts.