Internet Initiative Japan Inc. Stock Upgraded (IIJI)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Internet Initiative Japan (Nasdaq:IIJI) has been upgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its revenue growth, attractive valuation levels, solid stock price performance, largely solid financial position with reasonable debt levels by most measures and notable return on equity. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income.

Highlights from the ratings report include:

• IIJI's revenue growth trails the industry average of 23.4%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 7.4%. This growth in revenue does not appear to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, displayed by a decline in earnings per share.
• Looking at where the stock is today compared to one year ago, we find that it is not only higher, but it has also clearly outperformed the rise in the S&P 500 over the same period, despite the company's weak earnings results. Turning our attention to the future direction of the stock, it goes without saying that even the best stocks can fall in an overall down market. However, in any other environment, this stock still has good upside potential despite the fact that it has already risen in the past year.
• INTERNET INITIATIVE JAPAN INC's earnings per share declined by 5.9% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. This company has not demonstrated a clear trend in earnings over the past two years, making it difficult to accurately predict earnings for the coming year. During the past fiscal year, INTERNET INITIATIVE JAPAN INC increased its bottom line by earning $0.47 versus $0.30 in the prior year.
• IIJI's debt-to-equity ratio of 0.64 is somewhat low overall, but it is high when compared to the industry average, implying that the management of the debt levels should be evaluated further. Regardless of the somewhat mixed results with the debt-to-equity ratio, the company's quick ratio of 0.93 is weak.

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Internet Initiative Japan Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides Internet connectivity, WAN, outsourcing, and systems integration services to customers primarily in Japan. The company has a P/E ratio of 19.8, above the average internet industry P/E ratio of 17.9 and above the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 17.7. Internet Initiative Japan has a market cap of $759 million and is part of the technology sector and internet industry. Shares are up 5.4% year to date as of the close of trading on Friday.

You can view the full Internet Initiative Japan Ratings Report or get investment ideas from our investment research center.
-- Written by a member of TheStreet RatingsStaff

 

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• Internet Initiative Japan Inc. Income Statement