Head-To-Head Review: Coda Octopus Group (NASDAQ:CODA) & Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT)

Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) and Coda Octopus Group (NASDAQ:CODA) are both industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and institutional ownership.

Risk and Volatility

Lockheed Martin has a beta of 0.1, indicating that its stock price is 90% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Coda Octopus Group has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Lockheed Martin and Coda Octopus Group”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lockheed Martin	$75.05 billion	1.65	$5.02 billion	$27.13	19.78
Coda Octopus Group	$26.56 million	4.55	$4.13 million	$0.43	24.91

Lockheed Martin has higher revenue and earnings than Coda Octopus Group. Lockheed Martin is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Coda Octopus Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

74.2% of Lockheed Martin shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 20.1% of Coda Octopus Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Lockheed Martin shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 19.5% of Coda Octopus Group 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Lockheed Martin and Coda Octopus Group, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lockheed Martin	1	9	8	1	2.47
Coda Octopus Group	0	1	2	0	2.67

Lockheed Martin presently has a consensus target price of $637.56, suggesting a potential upside of 18.79%. Coda Octopus Group has a consensus target price of $14.00, suggesting a potential upside of 30.72%. Given Coda Octopus Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Coda Octopus Group is more favorable than Lockheed Martin.

Profitability

This table compares Lockheed Martin and Coda Octopus Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lockheed Martin	8.16%	91.42%	11.02%
Coda Octopus Group	17.64%	8.32%	7.58%

Summary

Lockheed Martin beats Coda Octopus Group on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lockheed Martin

Lockheed Martin Corporation, a security and aerospace company, engages in the research, design, development, manufacture, integration, and sustainment of technology systems, products, and services worldwide. The company operates through Aeronautics, Missiles and Fire Control, Rotary and Mission Systems, and Space segments. The Aeronautics segment offers combat and air mobility aircraft, unmanned air vehicles, and related technologies. The Missiles and Fire Control segment provides air and missile defense systems; tactical missiles and air-to-ground precision strike weapon systems; logistics; fire control systems; mission operations support, readiness, engineering support, and integration services; manned and unmanned ground vehicles; and energy management solutions. The Rotary and Mission Systems segment offers military and commercial helicopters, surface ships, sea and land-based missile defense systems, radar systems, sea and air-based mission and combat systems, command and control mission solutions, cyber solutions, and simulation and training solutions. The Space segment offers satellites; space transportation systems; strategic, advanced strike, and defensive systems; and classified systems and services in support of national security systems. This segment also provides network-enabled situational awareness and integrates space and ground global systems to help its customers gather, analyze, and securely distribute critical intelligence data. It serves primarily serves the U.S. government, as well as foreign military sales contracted through the U.S. government. The company was founded in 1912 and is based in Bethesda, Maryland.

About Coda Octopus Group

Coda Octopus Group, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, sells, and rentals underwater technologies and equipment for real time 3D imaging, mapping, defense, and survey applications in the Americas, Europe, Australia, Asia, the Middle East, and Africa. The company operates through two segments, Marine Engineering Business and Marine Technology Business. The company's solutions include geophysical systems; GNSS-aided navigation systems (attitude and positioning systems); real time volumetric imaging sonar products; and diver augmented vision display systems. It also offers GeoSurvey, a software and hardware package for acquisition and processing of sidescan sonar and sub-bottom profiler data in oil and gas companies; DA4G, a geophysical hardware; and Survey Engine, a software product that provides post-processing solutions for sidescan sonar and sub-bottom profiler data. In addition, the company offers 3D/4D/5D/6D imaging sonar technology under the Echoscope and Echoscope PIPE name; diving technology under the CodaOctopus DAVD; and operates as a sub-contractor for defense contractors, as well as supplies sub-assemblies for broader mission critical defense systems. It markets and sells its technology solutions for the subsea and underwater markets. Coda Octopus Group, Inc. was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Orlando, Florida.