Head-To-Head Contrast: Interlink Electronics (NASDAQ:LINK) & Knowles (NYSE:KN)

Knowles (NYSE:KN) and Interlink Electronics (NASDAQ:LINK) are both small-cap computer and technology companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Knowles and Interlink Electronics’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Knowles	-24.36%	5.39%	3.87%
Interlink Electronics	5.99%	7.39%	6.93%

Risk and Volatility

Knowles has a beta of 1.42, meaning that its share price is 42% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Interlink Electronics has a beta of 0.93, meaning that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Knowles and Interlink Electronics’ top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Knowles	$791.40 million	2.01	$72.40 million	$0.88	20.17
Interlink Electronics	$12.64 million	2.16	$1.26 million	$0.09	46.78

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

Institutional & Insider Ownership

96.3% of Knowles shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.4% of Interlink Electronics shares are held by institutional investors. 2.7% of Knowles shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 73.8% of Interlink Electronics shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Knowles and Interlink Electronics, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Knowles	0	1	0	0	2.00
Interlink Electronics	0	0	0	0	N/A

Knowles presently has a consensus target price of $20.00, suggesting a potential upside of 12.68%. Given Knowles’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Knowles is more favorable than Interlink Electronics.

About Knowles

Knowles Corporation offers capacitors, radio frequency (RF) filtering products, balanced armature speakers, micro-acoustic microphones, and audio solutions in Asia, the United States, Europe, other Americas, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Precision Devices (PD); Medtech & Specialty Audio (MSA); and Consumer MEMS Microphones (CMM). The PD segment designs and delivers film, electrolytic, and mica capacitor products for use in power supplies and medical implants; electromagnetic interference filters; and RF filtering solutions for use in satellite communications and radar systems for defense applications. The MSA segment designs and manufactures balanced armature speakers and microphones for the hearing health, audio, and True Wireless Stereo (TWS) markets. The CMM segment designs and manufactures micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) microphones and audio solutions used in applications that serve the ear, mobile, TWS, Internet of Things, computing, and smartphones markets. The company serves the defense, medtech, electric vehicle, industrial, communications, and consumer electronics markets through original equipment manufacturers, their contract manufacturers, suppliers, sales representatives, and distributors. Knowles Corporation was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Itasca, Illinois.

About Interlink Electronics

Interlink Electronics, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and sells force-sensing technologies that incorporate proprietary materials technology, firmware, and software into sensor-based products and custom sensor system solutions in the United States, Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and internationally. The company's products include sensor components, subassemblies, modules, and products that support cursor control and novel three-dimensional user inputs. It also provides simple force and piezo sensors to multi-finger capable rugged trackpads; Force-Sensing Resistor sensors; force sensing linear potentiometers for menu navigation and control; and integrated mouse modules and pointing solutions to various electronic devices. In addition, the company offers human machine interface technology platforms for various applications, including vehicle entry, vehicle multi-media control interface, rugged touch controls, presence detection, collision detection, speed and torque controls, pressure mapping, biological monitoring, and others; and embedded firmware development and integration support services. It serves multi-national and start-up companies, technology design houses, original design manufacturers, original equipment manufacturers, and universities in various markets, such as consumer electronics, automotive, industrial, and medical through direct sales employees, as well as outside sales representatives and distributors. Interlink Electronics, Inc. was incorporated in 1985 and is headquartered in Irvine, California.