Analyzing CVD Equipment (NASDAQ:CVV) and ATS (NYSE:ATS)

ATS (NYSE:ATS) and CVD Equipment (NASDAQ:CVV) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Volatility & Risk

ATS has a beta of 1.15, indicating that its share price is 15% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CVD Equipment has a beta of 1.32, indicating that its share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares ATS and CVD Equipment’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ATS	0.28%	8.02%	3.28%
CVD Equipment	78.83%	-18.70%	-17.21%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for ATS and CVD Equipment, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ATS	1	3	3	0	2.29
CVD Equipment	0	1	0	0	2.00

ATS presently has a consensus target price of $42.50, indicating a potential upside of 150.10%. Given ATS’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe ATS is more favorable than CVD Equipment.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares ATS and CVD Equipment”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ATS	$2.87 billion	0.57	$51.85 million	$0.05	339.86
CVD Equipment	$25.79 million	1.07	-$1.59 million	$1.45	2.74

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

75.8% of ATS shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 31.6% of CVD Equipment shares are held by institutional investors. 23.5% of CVD Equipment shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

ATS beats CVD Equipment on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ATS

ATS Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides automation solutions worldwide. The company is also involved in planning, designing, building, commissioning, and servicing automated manufacturing and assembly systems, including automation products and test solutions. In addition, it offers pre-automation services comprising discovery and analysis, concept development, simulation, and total cost of ownership modelling; post automation services, including training, process optimization, preventative maintenance, emergency and on-call support, spare parts, retooling, retrofits, and equipment relocation; and contract manufacturing services, as well as after sales and services. Further, the company provides engineering design, prototyping, process verification, specification writing, software and manufacturing process controls development, standard automation products/platforms, equipment design and build, third-party equipment qualification, procurement and integration, automation system installation, product line commissioning, validation, and documentation services. Additionally, it offers value engineering, supply chain management, and integration and manufacturing capabilities, as well as other automation products and solutions; and software and digital solutions comprising connected factory floor management systems to capture, analyze, and use real time machine performance data to troubleshoot, deliver process and product solutions, prevent equipment downtime, drive operational efficiency, and unlock performance for sustainable production improvements. ATS Corporation serves life sciences, transportation and mobility, consumer products, food and beverage, electronics, nuclear, packaging, warehousing and distribution, and energy markets. The company was formerly known as ATS Automation Tooling Systems Inc. and changed its name to ATS Corporation in November 2022. ATS Corporation was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Cambridge, Canada.

About CVD Equipment

CVD Equipment Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells equipment to develop and manufacture materials and coatings in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: CVD Equipment, Stainless Design Concepts, and CVD Materials. The CVD Equipment segment offers chemical vapor deposition, physical vapor transport, and thermal process equipment under the FirstNano brand for various markets, such as high power electronics, aerospace advanced materials for gas turbine jet engines, and nanomaterials used in batteries, as well as semiconductors, LEDs, carbon nanotubes, nanowires, solar cells, and other industrial and research applications. The Stainless Design Concepts segment provides ultra-high purity gas and chemical delivery control systems, including gas cylinder storage cabinets, custom gas and chemical delivery systems, gas and liquid valve manifold boxes, and gas isolation boxes for semiconductor fabrication processes, aerospace, solar cells, LEDs, carbon nanotubes, nanowires, and industrial applications. The CVD Materials segment offers products related to advanced materials and coatings, such as MesoPlasma printing services and products comprising heaters, antennas, and sensors to aerospace, satellite, power generation, defense, and other markets. The company also provides annealing, diffusion, and low pressure chemical vapor deposition furnaces; and standard and custom fabricated quartz-ware used in its equipment and other customer tools. The company was incorporated in 1982 and is headquartered in Central Islip, New York.