Lesaka Technologies (NASDAQ:LSAK – Get Rating) and QC (OTCMKTS:QCCO – Get Rating) are both small-cap business services companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and risk.
Profitability
This table compares Lesaka Technologies and QC’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Lesaka Technologies | -8.57% | -12.34% | -4.78% |
| QC | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent recommendations for Lesaka Technologies and QC, as provided by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Lesaka Technologies | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
| QC | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
Institutional and Insider Ownership
56.3% of Lesaka Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.4% of QC shares are held by institutional investors. 2.7% of Lesaka Technologies shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 63.4% of QC shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Volatility & Risk
Lesaka Technologies has a beta of 1.08, indicating that its stock price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, QC has a beta of 1.02, indicating that its stock price is 2% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares Lesaka Technologies and QC’s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Lesaka Technologies | $417.85 million | 0.56 | -$43.88 million | ($0.62) | -6.08 |
| QC | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A | N/A |
QC has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Lesaka Technologies.
About Lesaka Technologies
Lesaka Technologies, Inc. engages in the provision of financial technology, products, and services to unbanked and underbanked individuals and small businesses in South Africa and other emerging economies. It operates through the following segments: Consumer, Merchant, and Other. The Consumer segment deals with the provision of financial services to customers, including a bank account, loans and insurance products. The Merchant segment refers to goods and services provided to corporate and other juristic entities. The Other segment includes operations outside South Africa and IPG’s processing activities. The company was founded by Serge Christian Pierre Belamant in 1989 and is headquartered in Johannesburg, South Africa.
About QC
QC Holdings, Inc. provides financial services and is focused on providing credit solutions for underserved consumers and small business. The firm engages in check cashing and short term lending. It also offers long term installment loans, online loans, and factoring for the small business. The company was founded by Don Allen Early and Mary Lou Andersen-Early in 1984 and is headquartered in Lenexa, KS.
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