Comparing SPI Energy (NASDAQ:SPI) & Rambus (NASDAQ:RMBS)

Rambus (NASDAQ:RMBS) and SPI Energy (NASDAQ:SPI) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk, profitability and valuation.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Rambus and SPI Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rambus	0	0	4	0	3.00
SPI Energy	0	0	0	0	N/A

Rambus presently has a consensus target price of $77.75, indicating a potential upside of 31.27%. Given Rambus’ higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Rambus is more favorable than SPI Energy.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

88.5% of Rambus shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 1.7% of SPI Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.0% of Rambus shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 24.6% of SPI Energy shares are owned 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.

Risk and Volatility

Rambus has a beta of 1.16, meaning that its stock price is 16% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SPI Energy has a beta of 0.66, meaning that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Rambus and SPI Energy’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rambus	$461.12 million	13.95	$333.90 million	$3.00	19.74
SPI Energy	$177.52 million	0.09	-$33.42 million	($0.88)	-0.55

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

Profitability

This table compares Rambus and SPI Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rambus	72.41%	17.70%	14.46%
SPI Energy	-11.77%	-167.64%	-9.56%

Summary

Rambus beats SPI Energy on 12 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rambus

Rambus Inc. provides semiconductor products in the United States, South Korea, Singapore, and internationally. The company offers DDR memory interface chips, including DDR5 and DDR4 memory interface chips to module manufacturers, OEMs, and hyperscalers; silicon IP, such as interface and security IP solutions that move and protect data in advanced data center, government, and automotive applications; and interface IP solutions for high-speed memory and chip-to-chip digital controller IP. It also provides a portfolios of security IP solutions, including crypto cores, hardware roots of trust, high-speed protocol engines, and chip provisioning technologies; and portfolio of patents that covers memory architecture, high-speed serial links, and security products. It markets its products and services through its direct sales force and distributors. Rambus Inc. was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

About SPI Energy

SPI Energy Co., Ltd. provides photovoltaic and electric vehicle (EV) solutions for business, residential, government, and utility customers and investors in Australia, Japan, Italy, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Greece. The company offers engineering, procurement, and construction services to independent power developers and producers, and commercial and industrial companies. It also develops, owns, and operates solar projects that sell electricity to power companies and other electricity off-takers, including government-owned utility companies. In addition, the company sells self-assembled solar modules, forklifts, pre-development solar projects, component and charging stations, as well as offers shipping, delivery, engineering, and maintenance services. As of April, 2022, it owned and operated 17.51 megawatts of solar projects. The company is headquartered in Sacramento, California.