Analyzing Iochpe-Maxion (OTCMKTS:IOCJY) and Cepton (NASDAQ:CPTN)

Cepton (NASDAQ:CPTN) and Iochpe-Maxion (OTCMKTS:IOCJY) are both small-cap auto/tires/trucks companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, valuation, earnings and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Cepton and Iochpe-Maxion’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cepton	-300.64%	N/A	-47.27%
Iochpe-Maxion	0.67%	2.31%	0.66%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

68.2% of Cepton shares are owned by institutional investors. 36.1% of Cepton shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Cepton and Iochpe-Maxion, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cepton	0	2	0	0	2.00
Iochpe-Maxion	0	0	0	0	N/A

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Cepton and Iochpe-Maxion’s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cepton	$21.16 million	2.32	-$48.55 million	($2.56)	-1.20
Iochpe-Maxion	$3.00 billion	0.15	$6.16 million	$0.05	20.00

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

Volatility and Risk

Cepton has a beta of 0.07, suggesting that its share price is 93% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Iochpe-Maxion has a beta of 1.24, suggesting that its share price is 24% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Iochpe-Maxion beats Cepton on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Cepton

Cepton, Inc. provides lidar-based solutions for automotive, smart cities, smart spaces, and smart industrial applications in the United States, Japan, China, and internationally. The company offers autograde lidar sensors, including Cepton Ultra, a slimmest lidar with MagnoSteer technology and proprietary ASIC chipset, enabling a combination of 300-meter range at 10% reflectivity and 0.05° resolution; Vista-X, a compact lidar solution with a range of up to 200m for long-range applications in ADAS L2+/L3, AV L4/L5, and suitable for smart infrastructure applications; and Nova, an extremely-small form factor lidar solution with a range of up to 30m for near-range applications in ADAS L2+/L3, AV L4/L5, and suitable for smart infrastructure applications. It also provides industrial grade lidar sensors, such as Vista-P, a compact lidar solution with a range of up to 200m for long-range applications in ADAS L2+/L3, AV L4/L5, and smart infrastructure applications; and Sora-P, an ultra-high scan rate, compact, and quasi line-scanning lidar solution that delivers high-fidelity profiling of objects moving at high speeds for free flow tolling and other industrial applications. The company was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in San Jose, California.

About Iochpe-Maxion

Iochpe-Maxion S.A. produces and sells automotive wheels and structural components for commercial and light vehicles in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, and internationally. It operates in two divisions, Maxion Wheels and Maxion Structural Components. The company offers heavy steel wheels; light steel wheels for automobiles, pick-ups, and SUVs, as well as light and medium commercial vehicles; wheels for agricultural machinery; and light aluminum wheels for automobiles. It also provides heavy structural components, including frames, side members, and cross members. In addition, the company offers light and automotive structural components, such as stampings for passenger vehicles, handbrake levers, pedal and welded assemblies, structural parts, and other automotive components. Further, it produces railway wheels, freight cars, and castings, as well as industrial castings. The company was founded in 1918 and is headquartered in Cruzeiro, Brazil.