Comparing Lesaka Technologies (NASDAQ:LSAK) & SHF (NASDAQ:SHFS)

Lesaka Technologies (NASDAQ:LSAK) and SHF (NASDAQ:SHFS) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation and risk.

Risk and Volatility

Lesaka Technologies has a beta of 0.33, suggesting that its stock price is 67% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SHF has a beta of 0.79, suggesting that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Lesaka Technologies and SHF, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lesaka Technologies	1	1	0	0	1.50
SHF	1	0	0	0	1.00

Profitability

This table compares Lesaka Technologies and SHF’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lesaka Technologies	-4.11%	-15.95%	-4.30%
SHF	-47.33%	-90.25%	-41.71%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

24.2% of Lesaka Technologies shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 29.2% of SHF shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.1% of Lesaka Technologies shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.8% of SHF shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lesaka Technologies	$328.70 million	1.18	-$87.50 million	($0.35)	-12.91
SHF	$7.67 million	0.13	-$2.16 million	($0.99)	-0.16

SHF has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Lesaka Technologies. Lesaka Technologies is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SHF, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Lesaka Technologies beats SHF on 7 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lesaka Technologies

Lesaka Technologies, Inc. operates as a Fintech company that utilizes its proprietary banking and payment technologies to deliver financial services solutions to merchants (B2B) and consumers (B2C) in Southern Africa. It offers cash management solutions, growth capital, card acquiring, bill payment technologies, and value-added services to formal and informal retail merchants, as well as banking, lending, and insurance solutions to consumers across Southern Africa. The company also engages in the sale of POS devices, SIM cards, and other consumables; and license of rights to use certain technology developed by the company, as well as offers related technology services. The company was formerly known as Net 1 UEPS Technologies, Inc. and changed its name to Lesaka Technologies, Inc. in May 2022. Lesaka Technologies, Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa.

About SHF

SHF Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides access to banking, lending, and other financial services to financial institutions serving the cannabis industry. The company, through its proprietary platform, offers access to business checking and savings accounts, cash management accounts, savings and investment options, commercial lending, courier services, remote deposit services, automated clearing house payments and origination, and wire payments. Its services allow cannabis related businesses to obtain services from financial institutions that allow them to run their business with enhanced financial insight into their business and access to resources. The company was founded in 2015 and is based in Golden, Colorado. SHF Holdings, Inc. operates as a subsidiary of Partner Colorado Credit Union.