Reviewing Axon Enterprise (NASDAQ:AXON) & Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD)

Woodward (NASDAQ:WWD) and Axon Enterprise (NASDAQ:AXON) are both large-cap aerospace companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk, institutional ownership and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Woodward and Axon Enterprise’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Woodward	12.39%	17.68%	9.35%
Axon Enterprise	10.05%	4.29%	1.95%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Woodward and Axon Enterprise, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Woodward	0	4	9	1	2.79
Axon Enterprise	0	3	14	0	2.82

Woodward currently has a consensus target price of $338.20, indicating a potential downside of 8.24%. Axon Enterprise has a consensus target price of $805.71, indicating a potential upside of 84.45%. Given Axon Enterprise’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Axon Enterprise is more favorable than Woodward.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

81.2% of Woodward shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.1% of Axon Enterprise shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of Woodward shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.7% of Axon Enterprise shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Woodward has a beta of 1, indicating that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, Axon Enterprise has a beta of 1.48, indicating that its stock price is 48% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Woodward and Axon Enterprise”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Woodward	$3.57 billion	6.20	$442.11 million	$7.19	51.26
Axon Enterprise	$2.08 billion	16.55	$377.03 million	$3.16	138.24

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

Summary

Woodward beats Axon Enterprise on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Woodward

Woodward, Inc. designs, manufactures, and services control solutions for the aerospace and industrial markets worldwide. The company operates in two segments, Aerospace and Industrial. The Aerospace segment provides fuel pumps, metering units, actuators, air valves, specialty valves, fuel nozzles, and thrust reverser actuation systems for turbine engines and nacelles, and flight deck controls, actuators, servocontrols, motors, and sensors for aircraft. These products are used on commercial and private aircraft and rotorcraft, as well as on military fixed-wing aircraft and rotorcraft, guided weapons, and other defense systems. It also provides aftermarket maintenance, repair and overhaul, and other services to commercial airlines, repair facilities, military depots, third party repair shops, and other end users. This segment sells its products to original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), tier-one suppliers, and contractors, as well as through aftermarket sales of components, such as provisioning spares and replacements. The Industrial segment offers actuators, valves, pumps, fuel injection systems, solenoids, ignition systems, speed controls, electronics and software, and sensors. These products are used on industrial gas turbines, steam turbines, compressors, and reciprocating engines. This segment sells its aftermarket products, and other related services to OEMs through an independent network of distributors, as well as directly to end users. The company was founded in 1870 and is headquartered in Fort Collins, Colorado.

About Axon Enterprise

Axon Enterprise, Inc. develops, manufactures, and sells conducted energy devices (CEDs) under the TASER brand in the United States and internationally. It operates through two segments, Software and Sensors, and TASER. The company also offers hardware and cloud-based software solutions that enable law enforcement to capture, securely store, manage, share, and analyze video and other digital evidence. Its products include axon officer safety plan; taser 10, taser7, taser X26P, taser X2, taser 7 CQ, and civilian series; cameras, such as axon body, axon flex, axon fleet, axon air, axon signal sidearm, axon signal vehicle, axon interview, and axon interview portable kit; software, including axon records, evidence, standards, commander, performance, auto-transcribe, justice, investigate, respond, and justice, my90, and redaction assistant; mobile applications, and training services, as well as hardware extended warranties; and Axon docks, cartridges, and batteries. The company sells its products through its direct sales, distribution partners, online store, and third-party resellers. Axon Enterprise, Inc. has a strategic partnership with Fusus, Inc. to expand bility to aggregate live video, data, and sensor feeds. It serves law enforcement, federal, correction, fire, EMS, campus, justice healthcare, retail, private security, and personal safety industries. The company was formerly known as TASER International, Inc. and changed its name to Axon Enterprise, Inc. in April 2017. Axon Enterprise, Inc. was incorporated in 1993 and is headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona.