Critical Analysis: Nikon (NINOY) vs. Its Peers

Nikon (OTCMKTS:NINOY) is one of 376 public companies in the “Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components” industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its peers? We will compare Nikon to related companies based on the strength of its institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings and risk.

Risk and Volatility

Nikon has a beta of 0.56, indicating that its stock price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Nikon’s peers have a beta of -0.32, indicating that their average stock price is 132% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Nikon and its peers, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Nikon	0	1	0	0	2.00
Nikon Competitors	2048	7630	10467	668	2.47

As a group, “Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components” companies have a potential upside of 32.07%. Given Nikon’s peers stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Nikon has less favorable growth aspects than its peers.

Dividends

Nikon pays an annual dividend of $0.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Nikon pays out -6.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components” companies pay a dividend yield of 1.9% and pay out 69.4% of their earnings in the form of a dividend.

Profitability

This table compares Nikon and its peers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Nikon	-11.86%	-13.88%	-7.47%
Nikon Competitors	-139.91%	-19.77%	-5.96%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.1% of Nikon shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 43.5% of shares of all “Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components” companies are owned by institutional investors. 16.4% of shares of all “Electronic Equipment, Instruments & Components” companies 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.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Nikon and its peers revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Nikon	$4.50 billion	-$568.18 million	-6.31
Nikon Competitors	$116.08 billion	$174.60 million	6.12

Nikon’s peers have higher revenue and earnings than Nikon. Nikon is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Summary

Nikon peers beat Nikon on 11 of the 15 factors compared.

About Nikon

Nikon Corporation is a Japan-based manufacturer of optical and imaging products. Founded in 1917 as Nippon Kogaku K.K., the company has expanded from its roots in precision optics into a range of technology and imaging businesses. Nikon’s products and services include digital cameras and lenses, semiconductor lithography systems, microscopes and other healthcare-related equipment, and industrial measurement and inspection systems. It also develops optical components and technologies used in manufacturing and other applications.