Silicon Laboratories (NASDAQ:SLAB) & United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) Head to Head Comparison

United Microelectronics (NYSE:UMC) and Silicon Laboratories (NASDAQ:SLAB) are both computer and technology companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares United Microelectronics and Silicon Laboratories”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
United Microelectronics	$226.87 billion	0.07	$1.95 billion	$0.65	10.05
Silicon Laboratories	$504.98 million	8.03	-$34.52 million	($7.40)	-16.89

United Microelectronics has higher revenue and earnings than Silicon Laboratories. Silicon Laboratories is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than United Microelectronics, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares United Microelectronics and Silicon Laboratories’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
United Microelectronics	22.89%	14.35%	9.13%
Silicon Laboratories	-46.93%	-12.60%	-10.85%

Risk and Volatility

United Microelectronics has a beta of 1.17, indicating that its share price is 17% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Silicon Laboratories has a beta of 1.21, indicating that its share price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for United Microelectronics and Silicon Laboratories, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
United Microelectronics	0	4	1	0	2.20
Silicon Laboratories	0	6	5	0	2.45

United Microelectronics presently has a consensus target price of $7.40, indicating a potential upside of 13.32%. Silicon Laboratories has a consensus target price of $122.44, indicating a potential downside of 2.04%. Given United Microelectronics’ higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe United Microelectronics is more favorable than Silicon Laboratories.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

5.1% of United Microelectronics shares are held by institutional investors. 8.0% of United Microelectronics shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.7% of Silicon Laboratories shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

United Microelectronics beats Silicon Laboratories on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About United Microelectronics

United Microelectronics Corporation operates as a semiconductor wafer foundry in Taiwan, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea, the United States, Europe, and internationally. The company provides circuit design, mask tooling, wafer fabrication, and assembly and testing services. It serves fabless design companies and integrated device manufacturers. United Microelectronics Corporation was incorporated in 1980 and is headquartered in Hsinchu City, Taiwan.

About Silicon Laboratories

Silicon Laboratories Inc., a fabless semiconductor company, provides various analog-intensive mixed-signal solutions in the United States, China, Taiwan, and internationally. The company's products include wireless microcontrollers and sensor products. Its products are used in various electronic products in a range of applications for the industrial Internet of Things (IoT), including industrial automation and control, smart buildings, access control, HVAC control, and industrial wearables and power tools; smart cities applications, such as smart metering, smart street lighting, renewable energy, electric vehicle supply equipment, and smart agriculture; commercial IoT applications, including smart lighting, asset tracking, electronic shelf labels, theft protection, and enterprise access points; smart home applications, comprising home automation/security systems, smart speakers, smart lighting, HVAC control, smart cameras, smart appliances, smart home sensing, smart locks, and window/blind controls; and connected health applications, including diabetes management, consumer health and fitness, elderly care, patient monitoring, and activity tracking; as well as in commercial building automation, consumer electronics, and medical instrumentation. The company sells its products through its direct sales force, as well as through a network of independent sales representatives and distributors. Silicon Laboratories Inc. was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.