Southland (NASDAQ:SLND) vs. Solarmax Technology (NASDAQ:SMXT) Head-To-Head Comparison

Solarmax Technology (NASDAQ:SMXT) and Southland (NASDAQ:SLND) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation and earnings.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

2.8% of Southland shares are owned by institutional investors. 25.4% of Solarmax Technology shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 73.4% of Southland shares are owned by 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.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Solarmax Technology and Southland, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Solarmax Technology	1	0	0	0	1.00
Southland	0	1	0	0	2.00

Volatility and Risk

Solarmax Technology has a beta of 0.24, suggesting that its stock price is 76% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Southland has a beta of 0.83, suggesting that its stock price is 17% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Solarmax Technology and Southland’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Solarmax Technology	-7.92%	N/A	-8.83%
Southland	-10.38%	-47.71%	-8.75%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Solarmax Technology and Southland”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Solarmax Technology	$90.98 million	0.27	-$6.32 million	($1.82)	-2.86
Southland	$603.01 million	0.07	-$19.25 million	($7.46)	-0.11

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

Summary

Southland beats Solarmax Technology on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Solarmax Technology

SolarMax Technology, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as an integrated solar energy company in the United States and China. The company engages in the sale and installation of photovoltaic and battery backup systems; sale of LED systems; and identifying and procuring solar farm projects for resale to third parties, as well as provision of engineering, procuring, and construction services for solar farm projects. It serves residential, commercial, and government customers. SolarMax Technology, Inc. was incorporated in 2008 and is headquartered in Riverside, California.

About Southland

Southland Holdings, Inc. engages in specialty infrastructure construction business in North America and internationally. The company operates through two segments, Civil and Transportation. The Civil segment designs and constructs water pipelines, pump stations, lift stations, water and wastewater treatment plants, concrete and structural steel, outfall, and tunneling. The Transportation segment designs and constructs bridges, roadways, marine, dredging, ship terminals and piers, and specialty structures and facilities, as well as convention centers, sports stadiums, marine facilities, and ferris wheels. Southland Holdings, Inc. was founded in 1900 and is headquartered in Grapevine, Texas.