Reviewing Olympic Steel (NASDAQ:ZEUS) & ZK International Group (NASDAQ:ZKIN)

ZK International Group (NASDAQ:ZKIN) and Olympic Steel (NASDAQ:ZEUS) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares ZK International Group and Olympic Steel’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ZK International Group	N/A	N/A	N/A
Olympic Steel	0.77%	1.95%	1.07%

Volatility and Risk

ZK International Group has a beta of 2.69, indicating that its stock price is 169% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Olympic Steel has a beta of 1.77, indicating that its stock price is 77% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for ZK International Group and Olympic Steel, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ZK International Group	0	0	0	0	0.00
Olympic Steel	0	0	1	0	3.00

Olympic Steel has a consensus price target of $38.00, suggesting a potential upside of 13.84%. Given Olympic Steel’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Olympic Steel is more favorable than ZK International Group.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.3% of ZK International Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.1% of Olympic Steel shares are owned by institutional investors. 29.8% of ZK International Group shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 13.8% of Olympic Steel shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares ZK International Group and Olympic Steel”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ZK International Group	$108.20 million	0.11	-$2.78 million	N/A	N/A
Olympic Steel	$1.94 billion	0.19	$22.98 million	$1.22	27.36

Olympic Steel has higher revenue and earnings than ZK International Group.

Summary

Olympic Steel beats ZK International Group on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ZK International Group

ZK International Group Co., Ltd., through its subsidiaries, engages in the designing, producing, and selling double-press thin-walled stainless steel, carbon steel, and single-press tubes and fittings in the People's Republic of China. It offers carbon and stainless steel strips; carbon and stainless steel pipes; light gauge stainless steel pipes; pipe connections and fittings; and couplings, unions, adapters, caps, plug pipes, elbows, three-way fittings, tees, cross, side-inlet elbows, wyes, reducers, bushings, pipe fasteners, and pipe flanges. The company also provides stainless steel band, copper strip, valve, light industry machinery and equipment, and other stainless steel products. Its products are used in various applications, including water and gas transmission within urban infrastructural development, residential housing development, food and beverage production, oil and gas exploitation, and agricultural irrigation. The company also exports its products to Europe, Africa, and Southeast Asia. ZK International Group Co., Ltd. was incorporated in 2015 and is based in Wenzhou, the People's Republic of China.

About Olympic Steel

Olympic Steel, Inc. processes, distributes, and stores metal products primarily in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. It operates in three segments: Carbon Flat Products; Specialty Metals Flat Products; and Tubular and Pipe Products. The company offers stainless steel and aluminum coil and sheet products, angles, rounds, and flat bars; alloy, heat treated, and abrasion resistant coils, sheets and plates; coated metals, including galvanized, galvannealed, electro galvanized, advanced high strength steels, aluminized, and automotive grades of steel; commercial quality, advanced high strength steel, drawing steel, and automotive grades cold rolled steel coil and sheet products; hot rolled carbon comprising hot rolled coil, pickled and oiled sheet and plate steel products, automotive grades, advanced high strength steels, and high strength low alloys; tube, pipe, and bar products, including round, square, and rectangular mechanical and structural tubing; hydraulic and stainless tubing; boiler tubing; carbon, stainless, and aluminum pipes; valves and fittings; and tin mill products, such as electrolytic tinplate, electrolytic chromium coated steel, and black plates. The company also provides cutting-to-length, slitting, shearing, blanking, tempering, stretcher-leveling, plate and laser processing, forming and machining, tube processing, finishing, and fabrication services, as well as value-added services, such as saw cutting, laser cutting, beveling, threading, and grooving services. It serves metal consuming industries, such as manufacturers and fabricators of transportation and material handling lift equipment, construction, mining and farm equipment, agriculture equipment, storage tanks, environmental and energy generation equipment, automobiles, food service, and electrical equipment, as well as general and plate fabricators, and metals service centers through direct sales force. Olympic Steel, Inc. was founded in 1954 and is based in Highland Hills, Ohio.