Critical Comparison: 8X8 (NASDAQ:EGHT) & Veritone (NASDAQ:VERI)

8X8 (NASDAQ:EGHT) and Veritone (NASDAQ:VERI) are both small-cap technology companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk and institutional ownership.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

94.0% of 8X8 shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.2% of Veritone shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.1% of 8X8 shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 7.4% of Veritone shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

8X8 has a beta of 1.91, indicating that its share price is 91% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Veritone has a beta of 2.33, indicating that its share price is 133% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares 8X8 and Veritone’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
8X8	0.64%	28.72%	6.14%
Veritone	-111.90%	-159.15%	-39.63%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for 8X8 and Veritone, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
8X8	1	1	2	0	2.25
Veritone	1	1	3	0	2.40

8X8 currently has a consensus target price of $3.12, indicating a potential upside of 46.71%. Veritone has a consensus target price of $6.12, indicating a potential upside of 1,167.07%. Given Veritone’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Veritone is more favorable than 8X8.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares 8X8 and Veritone”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
8X8	$735.75 million	0.42	$1.65 million	$0.05	42.60
Veritone	$92.19 million	0.53	-$111.73 million	($0.38)	-1.27

8X8 has higher revenue and earnings than Veritone. Veritone is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than 8X8, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

8X8 beats Veritone on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About 8X8

8×8, Inc. engages in the provision of enterprise communication solutions. It offers solutions to the business services, education, financial services, government, healthcare, and manufacturing industries. The company was founded in February 1987 and is headquartered in Campbell, CA.

About Veritone

Veritone, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of artificial intelligence (AI) computing solutions and services in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, Australia, Israel, and India. It develops and operates aiWARE platform, an AI operating system, that uses machine learning algorithms or AI models designed to mimic human cognitive functions, such as perception, prediction, and problem solving and optimization, as well as enables users to transform unstructured data into structured data, and analyze and optimize data to drive business processes and insights. The company also provides media advertising agency services, including media planning and strategy, media buying and placement, campaign messaging, clearance verification and attribution, and custom analytics directly to advertisers through outbound sales networking, and client and partner referrals, as well as indirectly through advertising agencies or marketing consultants. It serves media and entertainment, government, legal and compliance, energy, and other vertical markets. The company was formerly known as Veritone Delaware, Inc. and changed its name to Veritone, Inc. in July 2014. Veritone, Inc. was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.