American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD – Get Free Report) and AdvanSix (NYSE:ASIX – Get Free Report) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and risk.
Profitability
This table compares American Vanguard and AdvanSix’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| American Vanguard | -23.72% | -26.21% | -9.97% |
| AdvanSix | 5.10% | 10.02% | 4.97% |
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares American Vanguard and AdvanSix”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| American Vanguard | $547.31 million | 0.30 | -$126.34 million | ($4.47) | -1.29 |
| AdvanSix | $1.52 billion | 0.34 | $44.15 million | $2.84 | 6.85 |
AdvanSix has higher revenue and earnings than American Vanguard. American Vanguard is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than AdvanSix, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
79.0% of American Vanguard shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 86.4% of AdvanSix shares are held by institutional investors. 7.6% of American Vanguard shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.6% of AdvanSix shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Volatility and Risk
American Vanguard has a beta of 1.26, suggesting that its stock price is 26% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, AdvanSix has a beta of 1.64, suggesting that its stock price is 64% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for American Vanguard and AdvanSix, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| American Vanguard | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
| AdvanSix | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3.00 |
American Vanguard presently has a consensus price target of $12.00, suggesting a potential upside of 107.40%. AdvanSix has a consensus price target of $33.50, suggesting a potential upside of 72.20%. Given American Vanguard’s higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe American Vanguard is more favorable than AdvanSix.
Summary
AdvanSix beats American Vanguard on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.
About American Vanguard
American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals for agricultural, commercial, and consumer uses in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and formulates chemicals, including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, soil health, plant nutrition, molluscicides, growth regulators, soil fumigants, and biorationals in liquid, powder, and granular forms for crops, turf and ornamental plants, and human and animal health protection. The company also markets, sells, and distributes end-use chemical and biological products for crop applications; and distributes chemicals for turf and ornamental markets. It distributes its products through national distribution companies, and buying groups or co-operatives; and through sales offices, sales force executives, sales agents, and wholly owned distributors. American Vanguard Corporation was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in Newport Beach, California.
About AdvanSix
AdvanSix Inc. engages in the manufacture and sale of polymer resins in the United States and internationally. It offers Nylon 6, a polymer resin, which is a synthetic material used to produce fibers, filaments, engineered plastics, and films. The company also provides caprolactam to manufacture polymer resins; ammonium sulfate fertilizers to distributors, farm cooperatives, and retailers; and acetone that are used in the production of adhesives, paints, coatings, solvents, herbicides, and engineered plastic resins, as well as other intermediate chemicals, including phenol, monoisopropylamine, dipropylamine, monoallylamine, alpha-methylstyrene, cyclohexanone, methyl ethyl ketoxime, acetaldehyde oxime, 2-pentanone oxime, cyclohexanol, sulfuric acid, ammonia, and carbon dioxide. It offers its products under the Aegis, Capran, Sulf-N, Nadone, Naxol, and EZ-Blox brands. The company sells its products directly, as well as through distributors. AdvanSix Inc. was incorporated in 2016 and is headquartered in Parsippany, New Jersey.
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