Plantronics (PLT) Competitors

Plantronics (NYSE:PLT) and Cisco Systems (NASDAQ:CSCO) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, earnings, valuation and media sentiment.

Which has more volatility and risk, PLT or CSCO?

Plantronics has a beta of 1.85, indicating that its stock price is 85% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cisco Systems has a beta of 0.91, indicating that its stock price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is PLT or CSCO a better dividend stock?

Plantronics pays an annual dividend of $0.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. Cisco Systems pays an annual dividend of $1.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.4%. Plantronics pays out 18.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Cisco Systems pays out 62.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Cisco Systems has raised its dividend for 13 consecutive years. Plantronics is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Does the media refer more to PLT or CSCO?

In the previous week, Cisco Systems had 86 more articles in the media than Plantronics. MarketBeat recorded 87 mentions for Cisco Systems and 1 mentions for Plantronics. Cisco Systems' average media sentiment score of 1.15 beat Plantronics' score of 0.00 indicating that Cisco Systems is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Plantronics	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Cisco Systems	66 Very Positive mention(s)	4 Positive mention(s)	10 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, PLT or CSCO?

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

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Plantronics	$1.73B	0.40	-$57.33M	$3.17	5.24
Cisco Systems	$56.65B	4.71	$10.45B	$2.62	25.69

Is PLT or CSCO more profitable?

Cisco Systems has a net margin of 18.45% compared to Plantronics' net margin of -3.32%. Cisco Systems' return on equity of 27.02% beat Plantronics' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Plantronics	-3.32%	-107.89%	5.62%
Cisco Systems	18.45%	27.02%	10.20%

Do analysts rate PLT or CSCO?

Cisco Systems has a consensus target price of $74.53, indicating a potential upside of 10.70%. Given Cisco Systems' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Cisco Systems is more favorable than Plantronics.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Plantronics	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	0.00
Cisco Systems	0 Sell rating(s)	10 Hold rating(s)	13 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.63

Do insiders & institutionals have more ownership in PLT or CSCO?

94.3% of Plantronics shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.3% of Cisco Systems shares are held by institutional investors. 1.7% of Plantronics shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Cisco Systems shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Cisco Systems beats Plantronics on 14 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.