AEHR vs ONTO Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Aehr is a small, high-beta pure-play on wafer-level burn-in demand from a concentrated set of AI and silicon-carbide customers, while Onto Innovation is a larger, more diversified process-control supplier riding the broader AI chip and advanced-packaging capex cycle. The choice comes down to appetite for concentrated small-cap volatility versus a steadier, more diversified semicap exposure.
Use this AEHR vs ONTO comparison to weigh concentrated small-cap upside against diversified semicap scale: Aehr can move sharply on single customer orders, while Onto's broader book smooths results but ties it more closely to overall fab capital spending cycles.
ONTO holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. AEHR has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+217.72% vs +152.08%), though ONTO has the better forward P/E setup (22.93x vs 57.30x for AEHR). ONTO leads on both revenue growth (35.30%) and operating margin (22.97%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for AEHR (+64.00%) than for ONTO (+45.37%).
- Want high-beta, small-cap exposure to AI chip test demand
- Are comfortable with lumpy, order-driven quarterly results
- Believe silicon photonics and AI burn-in adoption is still early
- Can tolerate large price swings tied to single customer news
- Prefer a larger, more diversified semicap equipment name
- Want exposure to advanced packaging capacity growth for AI accelerators
- Seek steadier revenue than concentrated small-cap peers
- Are comfortable with broader semiconductor capex cyclicality
| Metric | AEHR | ONTO |
|---|---|---|
| AI score | 58.0 | 64.5 |
| AI rank | #181 | #82 |
| Latest close | $79.27 | $267.21 |
| 1M return | -0.89% | +3.34% |
| 6M return | +111.78% | +23.77% |
| 1Y return | +217.72% | +152.08% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | AEHR | ONTO |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $31.86K (+218.6%) started 2025-09-02 | $25.72K (+157.2%) started 2025-09-02 |
| 5Y ago | $106.26K (+962.6%) started 2021-08-31 | $36.05K (+260.5%) started 2021-08-31 |
| 10Y ago | $327.56K (+3175.6%) started 2016-08-31 | $75.63K (+656.3%) started 2019-10-28 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | AEHR | ONTO |
|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $2.59B | $16.33B |
| Trailing P/E | N/A | 99.71 |
| Forward P/E | 57.30 | 22.93 |
| Price/Sales | 51.72 | 14.58 |
| EV/Revenue | 50.59 | 11.50 |
| Analyst target | $130.00 | $388.45 |
| Target upside | +64.00% | +45.37% |
| Metric | AEHR | ONTO |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growth | 33.70% | 35.30% |
| Earnings growth | N/A | 75.40% |
| EPS growth | N/A | +75.40% |
| FCF margin | -3.91% | +18.12% |
| Operating margin | -6.40% | 22.97% |
| Profit margin | -14.25% | 11.84% |
| ROIC proxy | -4.16% | 6.83% |
| Return on equity | -4.16% | 6.83% |
| Dividend yield | 0.00% | 0.00% |
| Beta | 3.09 | 1.59 |
| Debt/equity | 4.50 | 76.55 |
| Current ratio | 10.33 | 9.73 |
| Quick ratio | 7.60 | 8.17 |
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | AEHR | ONTO |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growth | +218.61% | +157.18% |
| CAGR | +220.91% | +158.69% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 1.51 | 1.64 | |
| Max drawdown | 45.56% | 42.31% | |
| Max daily drop | 17.61% | 12.46% | |
| Max wkly drop | 33.78% | 26.06% | |
| 5Y | Growth | +962.60% | +260.46% |
| CAGR | +60.44% | +29.24% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.92 | 0.66 | |
| Max drawdown | 87.37% | 62.82% | |
| Max daily drop | 27.08% | 30.21% | |
| Max wkly drop | 36.64% | 30.37% | |
| 10Y | Growth | +3175.62% | +656.33% |
| CAGR | +41.76% | +34.41% | |
| Sharpe ratio | 0.77 | 0.73 | |
| Max drawdown | 87.37% | 62.82% | |
| Max daily drop | 27.08% | 30.21% | |
| Max wkly drop | 43.32% | 30.37% |
| Category | AEHR | ONTO |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Aehr Test Systems | Onto Innovation Inc. |
| Sector | Semiconductor Equipment | Semiconductor Equipment |
| Industry | N/A | N/A |
| Core business | Aehr Test Systems designs wafer-level burn-in and test systems used to screen semiconductors, including AI processors, silicon photonics, and silicon carbide power devices, for reliability before shipment. | Onto Innovation supplies process control, metrology, and inspection systems used across semiconductor fabs, including advanced packaging and specialty markets tied to AI chip production. |
| Investor focus | Investors watch Aehr's customer concentration, order lumpiness tied to a small number of large production wins, and its expansion from silicon carbide into AI and silicon photonics test. | Investors focus on Onto's exposure to advanced packaging (CoWoS-type) capacity growth for AI accelerators, its diversified customer base versus Aehr, and margin trends as mix shifts toward higher-value systems. |
- Direct exposure to burn-in test demand from AI processors and silicon photonics
- Follow-on production orders from lead customers signal expanding wallet share
- Niche technology position with high switching costs once qualified into a customer's line
- Diversified process control and inspection portfolio spanning multiple fab process steps
- Meaningful exposure to advanced packaging capacity buildouts for AI chips
- Larger scale and broader customer base than most specialty semicap peers
- High revenue concentration in a small number of customers makes results lumpy
- Small-cap size means order timing swings can move the stock sharply
- Competition from larger equipment makers entering adjacent test niches
- Cyclicality tied to overall semiconductor capital spending
- Customer concentration among a handful of large foundries and packaging houses
- Competition from larger metrology players like KLA in overlapping segments
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