Alto Ingredients (NASDAQ:ALTO) versus RLX Technology (NYSE:RLX) Head-To-Head Analysis

RLX Technology (NYSE:RLX) and Alto Ingredients (NASDAQ:ALTO) are both consumer discretionary companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and institutional ownership.

Volatility & Risk

RLX Technology has a beta of 1.1, suggesting that its stock price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Alto Ingredients has a beta of 0.31, suggesting that its stock price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares RLX Technology and Alto Ingredients”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
RLX Technology	$376.55 million	10.55	$75.60 million	$0.07	36.14
Alto Ingredients	$965.26 million	0.07	-$58.98 million	($0.92)	-1.00

RLX Technology has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Alto Ingredients. Alto Ingredients is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than RLX Technology, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares RLX Technology and Alto Ingredients’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
RLX Technology	22.32%	4.54%	4.29%
Alto Ingredients	-7.16%	-18.78%	-10.60%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

22.7% of RLX Technology shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 42.4% of Alto Ingredients shares are held by institutional investors. 53.4% of RLX Technology shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.3% of Alto Ingredients shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for RLX Technology and Alto Ingredients, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
RLX Technology	0	1	0	0	2.00
Alto Ingredients	0	0	1	0	3.00

RLX Technology currently has a consensus price target of $2.25, indicating a potential downside of 11.07%. Alto Ingredients has a consensus price target of $5.50, indicating a potential upside of 499.65%. Given Alto Ingredients’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Alto Ingredients is more favorable than RLX Technology.

Summary

RLX Technology beats Alto Ingredients on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About RLX Technology

RLX Technology Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of e-vapor products in the People's Republic of China and internationally. It serves partner distributors and retail outlets. The company was founded in 2018 and is headquartered in Beijing, China.

About Alto Ingredients

Alto Ingredients, Inc. produces, distributes, and markets specialty alcohols, renewable fuel, and essential ingredients in the United States. The company operates in three segments: Marketing and Distribution, Pekin Campus Production, and Western Production. It offers specialty alcohols used in mouthwash, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, hand sanitizers, disinfectants, and cleaners for health, home, and beauty markets; grain neutral spirits used in alcoholic beverages and vinegar, as well as corn germ used in corn oils in the food and beverage markets; alcohols and other products for paint applications and fertilizers in the industrial and agriculture markets; and essential ingredients include dried yeast, corn protein meal, corn protein feed, distiller's grains, and liquid feed for commercial animal feed and pet food applications, as well as yeast for human consumption. The company also provides fuel-grade ethanol used as transportation fuel and distillers corn oil used as a biodiesel feedstock, as well as fuel-grade ethanol produced by third parties. In addition, it offers transportation, storage, and delivery services through third-party service providers. The company sells ethanol to integrated oil companies and gasoline marketers; essential ingredient feed products to dairies and feedlots; and corn oil to poultry, renewable diesel, and biodiesel customers. It operates alcohol production facilities. The company was formerly known as Pacific Ethanol, Inc. and changed its name to Alto Ingredients, Inc. in January 2021. Alto Ingredients, Inc. was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Pekin, Illinois.