Comparing BlackBerry (NYSE:BB) and Veritone (NASDAQ:VERI)

Veritone (NASDAQ:VERI) and BlackBerry (NYSE:BB) are both technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Veritone and BlackBerry’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Veritone	-111.90%	-159.15%	-39.63%
BlackBerry	13.09%	13.71%	8.36%

Volatility & Risk

Veritone has a beta of 2.33, meaning that its share price is 133% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BlackBerry has a beta of 2.23, meaning that its share price is 123% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Veritone and BlackBerry”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Veritone	$92.19 million	0.53	-$111.73 million	($0.38)	-1.27
BlackBerry	$549.10 million	9.32	$53.20 million	$0.12	72.88

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Veritone and BlackBerry, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Veritone	1	1	3	0	2.40
BlackBerry	0	7	2	0	2.22

Veritone currently has a consensus price target of $6.12, suggesting a potential upside of 1,167.07%. BlackBerry has a consensus price target of $9.86, suggesting a potential upside of 12.72%. Given Veritone’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Veritone is more favorable than BlackBerry.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

39.2% of Veritone shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 54.5% of BlackBerry shares are owned by institutional investors. 7.4% of Veritone shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of BlackBerry shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

BlackBerry beats Veritone on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Veritone

Veritone, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of artificial intelligence (AI) computing solutions and services in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Israel, and India. It develops and operates aiWARE platform, an AI operating system, that uses machine learning algorithms or AI models designed to mimic human cognitive functions, such as perception, prediction, and problem solving and optimization, as well as enables users to transform unstructured data into structured data, and analyze and optimize data to drive business processes and insights. The company also provides media advertising agency services, including media planning and strategy, media buying and placement, campaign messaging, clearance verification and attribution, and custom analytics directly to advertisers through outbound sales networking, and client and partner referrals, as well as indirectly through advertising agencies or marketing consultants. It serves media and entertainment, government, legal and compliance, energy, and other vertical markets. The company was formerly known as Veritone Delaware, Inc. and changed its name to Veritone, Inc. in July 2014. Veritone, Inc. was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry Limited provides intelligent security software and services to enterprises and governments worldwide. The company operates through three segments: Cybersecurity, IoT, and Licensing and Other. The company offers CylanceENDPOINT, an integrated endpoint security solution; CylanceGUARD, a managed detection and response solution; CylanceEDGE, an AI-powered continuous authentication zero trust network access solution; CylanceINTELLIGENCE, a contextual cyber threat intelligence service; BlackBerry Dynamics offers a development platform and secure container for mobile applications; BlackBerry Workspaces a secure Enterprise File Sync and Share (EFSS) solution; BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) Enterprise, an enterprise-grade secure instant messaging solution for messaging, voice and video; BlackBerry SecuSUITE is a certified, multi-OS voice and text messaging solution; BlackBerry AtHoc, a secure networked critical event management solution; and BlackBerry unified endpoint management (UEM) solutions. It also provides BlackBerry Technology Solutions (BTS); BlackBerry Certicom, a patented elliptic curve cryptography, which provides device security, anti-counterfeiting and product authentication solutions; BlackBerry Radar offers monitoring and telematics solutions; BlackBerry Professional; and cyber security consulting services. In addition, the company is involved in the patent licensing and legacy service access fees business. The company was formerly known as Research In Motion Limited and changed its name to BlackBerry Limited in July 2013. BlackBerry Limited was incorporated in 1984 and is headquartered in Waterloo, Canada.