Financial Survey: Waldencast (NASDAQ:WALD) versus Solesence (NASDAQ:SLSN)

Waldencast (NASDAQ:WALD) and Solesence (NASDAQ:SLSN) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Waldencast and Solesence’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Waldencast	N/A	N/A	N/A
Solesence	8.13%	32.99%	9.74%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

42.0% of Waldencast shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 70.2% of Solesence shares are held by institutional investors. 5.9% of Waldencast shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 4.8% of Solesence shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Waldencast and Solesence, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Waldencast	1	1	5	0	2.57
Solesence	0	1	0	0	2.00

Waldencast presently has a consensus price target of $4.97, indicating a potential upside of 147.33%. Given Waldencast’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Waldencast is more favorable than Solesence.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Waldencast and Solesence”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Waldencast	$273.87 million	0.90	-$42.44 million	N/A	N/A
Solesence	$64.42 million	3.98	$4.24 million	$0.07	52.00

Solesence has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Waldencast.

Volatility and Risk

Waldencast has a beta of -0.39, suggesting that its share price is 139% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Solesence has a beta of 0.94, suggesting that its share price is 6% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Solesence beats Waldencast on 7 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Waldencast

Waldencast plc operates in the beauty and wellness business. The company engages in developing, acquiring, accelerating, and scaling various brands. It provides cosmetic, over-the-counter, and prescription products under the Obagi Medical, Obagi Clinical, and Obagi Professional brands; and a Skintrinsiq device for use in facial treatments that is used by physicians' offices, spas, and aestheticians. The company also offers clean makeup products under the Milk Makeup brand. It sells its products to dermatologists, plastic surgeons, and other physicians who focuses on aesthetic and therapeutic skincare, including physicians on site at medical spas, through its direct sales force, as well as through distribution partners. The company is headquartered in White Plains, New York.

About Solesence

Nanophase Technologies Corporation provides engineered materials, formulation development, and commercial manufacturing with an integrated family of technologies in the United States. It offers surface engineered zinc oxide and titanium dioxide for sunscreens and personal care products; fully formulated cosmetics, sun care, and skin care under the Solésence brand name; and advanced materials products, such as architectural coatings, industrial coatings, abrasion-resistant additives, plastics additives, medical diagnostics, and various surface finishing technologies applications. The company was incorporated in 1989 and is headquartered in Romeoville, Illinois.