Head to Head Survey: Orion Energy Systems (NASDAQ:OESX) vs. Picocela (NASDAQ:PCLA)

Picocela (NASDAQ:PCLA) and Orion Energy Systems (NASDAQ:OESX) are both small-cap companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, earnings and risk.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Picocela and Orion Energy Systems, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Picocela	0	0	0	0	0.00
Orion Energy Systems	0	0	1	0	3.00

Orion Energy Systems has a consensus price target of $3.00, indicating a potential upside of 236.70%. Given Orion Energy Systems’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Orion Energy Systems is more favorable than Picocela.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

52.6% of Orion Energy Systems shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.1% of Orion Energy Systems shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Picocela and Orion Energy Systems’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Picocela	N/A	N/A	N/A
Orion Energy Systems	-8.54%	-48.85%	-15.14%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Picocela and Orion Energy Systems”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Picocela	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Orion Energy Systems	$90.58 million	0.32	-$11.67 million	($0.23)	-3.87

Picocela has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Orion Energy Systems.

Summary

Orion Energy Systems beats Picocela on 6 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Picocela

We are engaged in the manufacturing, installation, and services for enterprise wireless mesh solutions. We derive our revenues mainly from two sources: (1) sales of product equipment, and (2) SaaS, maintenance and others. Under the first revenue source, we develop mesh Wi-Fi access point devices, PCWL series, adopting our proprietary patented wireless mesh communication technology software PicoCELA Backhaul Engine (“PBE”), which enables wireless Wi-Fi and mesh communication by linking a chain of multiple wireless Wi-Fi access points by radio communication not by cabling. We outsource the manufacturing of PCWL series, our mesh Wi-Fi access point devices incorporating the technology, and sell PCWL series both through distributors and to end customers directly. Under the second revenue source, we provide a cloud portal service in a SaaS model, which enables users to monitor connectivity and communication traffic at each of our mesh Wi-Fi access points. Our cloud portal service also serves as a platform for customers to install their proprietary edge-computing software into our mesh Wi-Fi access point devices. We also license our patented wireless mesh technology to third-party manufacturers which utilize our wireless mesh technology. Our business is geographically concentrated. We operate solely in Japan and generate revenue from this market as of the date of this prospectus. Due to this geographic concentration, our results of operations and financial conditions are subject to greater risks from changes in general economic and other conditions in Japan, than the operations of more geographically diversified competitors. Some of the technologies used in our products are licensed from Kyushu University, and the termination of these licenses could have a material adverse effect on our business. We outsource the manufacturing of all hardware products, PCWL series, and our mesh Wi-Fi access points devices, and are therefore subject to certain risks if our third-party manufacturers do not provide our end-customers with the quality and performance that they expect from our products. As of the date of this prospectus, we maintain a stable relationship with our major manufacturers. While we may have certain contractual remedies against them, if any of our major manufacturers becomes unable or unwilling to continue to manufacture our PCWL series, such remedies may not be sufficient in scope, we may not be able to effectively enforce such remedies, and we may incur significant costs in enforcing such remedies. For the six months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, we had a total revenue of JPY278,481 thousand (approximately $1,842 thousand), and JPY117,421 thousand, respectively. Revenue generated from the sales of product equipment was JPY231,069 thousand (approximately $1,528 thousand) and JPY83,238 thousand for the six months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. Revenue derived from SaaS, maintenance and others was JPY47,412 thousand (approximately $314 thousand) and JPY34,183 thousand for the six months ended March 31, 2024 and 2023, respectively. For the fiscal years ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, we had a total revenue of JPY559,521 thousand (approximately $3,700 thousand), and JPY682,121 thousand, respectively. Revenue generated from the sales of product equipment was JPY465,691 thousand (approximately $3,080 thousand) and JPY540,857 thousand for the fiscal years ended September 2023 and 2022, respectively. Revenue derived from SaaS, maintenance and others was JPY93,830 thousand (approximately $620 thousand) and JPY141,264 thousand for the fiscal years ended September 2023 and 2022, respectively. Our headquarters are located at 2-34-5 Ningyocho, SANOS Building, Nihonbashi, Chuo-ku, Tokyo 103-0013 Japan. Our agent for service of process in the United States is Cogency Global Inc., located at 122 East 42nd Street, 18th Floor, New York, NY 10168.

About Orion Energy Systems

Orion Energy Systems, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, researches, designs, develops, manufactures, markets, sells, installs, and implements energy management systems for commercial office and retail, area lighting, industrial applications, and government in North America and Germany. It operates in three segments: Lighting, Maintenance, and Electric Vehicle (EV). The company offers light emitting diode (LED) lighting products; construction and engineering services for commercial lighting and energy management system; lighting and electrical system maintenance, repair, and replacement services; and EV charging station and installation solutions. It also provides LED high bay fixtures and LED troffer retrofits; smart lighting controls, a wireless Internet of Things enabled control solution that provides lighting control options and data intelligence capabilities for building managers; and various LED fixtures for lighting and energy management needs comprising fixtures for agribusinesses, parking lots, roadways, retail, mezzanine, outdoor applications, and private label resale. In addition, the company offers lighting-related energy management services, such as site assessment, site field verification, utility incentive and government subsidy management, engineering design, project management, facility design commissioning, and recycling. It serves customers directly and through independent sales agencies and distributors, national account end-users, federal and state government facilities, regional account end-users, electrical distributors, electrical contractors, and energy service companies. Orion Energy Systems, Inc. was incorporated in 1996 and is headquartered in Manitowoc, Wisconsin.