Reviewing Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) and SharpLink Gaming (NASDAQ:SBET)

Vertex (NASDAQ:VERX) and SharpLink Gaming (NASDAQ:SBET) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and risk.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

59.1% of Vertex shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 13.8% of SharpLink Gaming shares are owned by institutional investors. 44.6% of Vertex shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 13.3% of SharpLink Gaming shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Vertex has a beta of 0.67, suggesting that its share price is 33% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SharpLink Gaming has a beta of 1.21, suggesting that its share price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Vertex and SharpLink Gaming’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vertex	3.20%	22.32%	6.55%
SharpLink Gaming	N/A	N/A	-22.00%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Vertex and SharpLink Gaming, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vertex	0	3	8	1	2.83
SharpLink Gaming	0	0	0	0	N/A

Vertex presently has a consensus target price of $38.80, suggesting a potential downside of 9.30%. Given Vertex’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Vertex is more favorable than SharpLink Gaming.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Vertex and SharpLink Gaming”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vertex	$617.83 million	10.74	-$13.09 million	$0.12	355.42
SharpLink Gaming	$4.33 million	0.53	-$14.24 million	N/A	N/A

Vertex has higher revenue and earnings than SharpLink Gaming.

Summary

Vertex beats SharpLink Gaming on 11 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Vertex

Vertex, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides enterprise tax technology solutions for retail trade, wholesale trade, and manufacturing industries in the United States and internationally. The company offers tax determination; compliance and reporting, including workflow management tools, role-based security, and event logging; tax data management; document management; analytics and insights; pre-built integration that includes mapping data fields, and business logic and configurations; industry-specific solutions; and technology specific solutions, such as chain flow accelerator and SAP-specific tools. It provides implementation services, such as configuration, data migration and implementation, and support and training; and managed services, including tax return preparation, filing and tax payment, and notice management. The company sells its software products through software licenses and software as a service subscription. Vertex, Inc. was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

About SharpLink Gaming

SharpLink Gaming, Inc. operates as an online technology company that connects sports fans, leagues, and sports websites to sports betting and iGaming content. The company operates through four segments: Affiliate Marketing Services United States, Affiliate Marketing Services International, Sports Gaming Client Services, and SportsHub Games Network. It operates a performance marketing platform, which owns and operates state-specific web domains to attract, acquire, and drive local sports betting and casino traffic directly to the company's sportsbook and casino partners, which are licensed to operate in each respective state; and offers sports betting data to sports media publishers. It also provides iGaming and affiliate marketing network, which focuses on delivering quality traffic and player acquisitions, and retention and conversions to global iGaming operator partners worldwide; and development, hosting, operations, maintenance, and service of free-to-play games and contests. In addition, the company owns and operates various real-money fantasy sports and sports simulation games and mobile apps on its platform; and is licensed or authorized to operate in every state in the United States, where fantasy sports play is legal and in which SportsHub has elected to operate based on the financial viability. SharpLink Gaming, Inc. was founded in 2019 and is headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota.