Zumiez (NASDAQ:ZUMZ) & Immersion (NASDAQ:IMMR) Head to Head Contrast
by Michael Walen · The Markets DailyZumiez (NASDAQ:ZUMZ – Get Free Report) and Immersion (NASDAQ:IMMR – Get Free Report) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
95.5% of Zumiez shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.6% of Immersion shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.3% of Zumiez shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 10.6% of Immersion shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Zumiez and Immersion”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Zumiez | $929.06 million | 0.32 | $13.38 million | $0.83 | 21.14 |
| Immersion | $1.73 billion | 0.14 | $4.52 million | $0.14 | 53.14 |
Zumiez has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Immersion. Zumiez is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Immersion, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Zumiez and Immersion’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Zumiez | 1.54% | 4.24% | 2.05% |
| Immersion | 0.26% | 0.80% | 0.35% |
Volatility and Risk
Zumiez has a beta of 1, suggesting that its stock price has a similar volatility profile to the S&P 500.Comparatively, Immersion has a beta of 1.02, suggesting that its stock price is 2% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Zumiez and Immersion, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Zumiez | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.67 |
| Immersion | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2.33 |
Immersion has a consensus target price of $13.50, suggesting a potential upside of 81.45%. Given Immersion’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Immersion is more favorable than Zumiez.
Summary
Zumiez beats Immersion on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Zumiez
Zumiez Inc. operates as a specialty retailer of apparel, footwear, accessories, and hardgoods for young men and women. The company provides hardgoods, including skateboards, snowboards, bindings, components, and other equipment. It operates stores in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia under the names of Zumiez, Blue Tomato, and Fast Times. It operates zumiez.com, zumiez.ca, blue-tomato.com, and fasttimes.com.au e-commerce websites. Zumiez Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Lynnwood, Washington.
About Immersion
Immersion Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the creation, design, development, and licensing of haptic technologies that allow people to use their sense of touch to engage with and experience various digital products in North America, Europe, and Asia. The company provides technology, patent, and combined licenses. It serves markets, including mobility, gaming, automotive, virtual and augmented reality, and wearables, as well as residential, commercial, and industrial Internet of Things. The company was incorporated in 1993 and is headquartered in Aventura, Florida.