Comparing Reliance (NYSE:RS) and Lynas Rare Earths (OTCMKTS:LYSDY)

Reliance (NYSE:RS) and Lynas Rare Earths (OTCMKTS:LYSDY) are both large-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends, risk and institutional ownership.

Risk & Volatility

Reliance has a beta of 0.87, indicating that its share price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lynas Rare Earths has a beta of 1.08, indicating that its share price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

79.3% of Reliance shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of Reliance shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Reliance and Lynas Rare Earths’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Reliance	5.23%	10.37%	7.24%
Lynas Rare Earths	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Reliance and Lynas Rare Earths, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Reliance	0	5	3	0	2.38
Lynas Rare Earths	0	2	0	0	2.00

Reliance presently has a consensus target price of $322.40, suggesting a potential upside of 14.50%. Given Reliance’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Reliance is more favorable than Lynas Rare Earths.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Reliance and Lynas Rare Earths”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Reliance	$13.84 billion	1.07	$875.20 million	$13.68	20.58
Lynas Rare Earths	$356.61 million	28.93	$5.17 million	N/A	N/A

Reliance has higher revenue and earnings than Lynas Rare Earths.

Summary

Reliance beats Lynas Rare Earths on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Reliance

Reliance, Inc. operates as a diversified metal solutions provider and the metals service center company in the United States, Canada, and internationally. The company distributes a line of approximately 100,000 metal products, including alloy, aluminum, brass, copper, carbon steel, stainless steel, titanium, and specialty steel products; and provides metals processing services to general manufacturing, non-residential construction, transportation, aerospace, energy, electronics and semiconductor fabrication, and heavy industries. It sells its products directly to original equipment manufacturers, which primarily include small machine shops and fabricators. The company was formerly known as Reliance Steel & Aluminum Co. and changed its name to Reliance, Inc. in February 2024. Reliance, Inc. was founded in 1939 and is based in Scottsdale, Arizona.

About Lynas Rare Earths

Lynas Rare Earths Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, development, mining, extraction, and processing of rare earth minerals in Australia and Malaysia. The company holds interests in the Mount Weld and Kalgoorlie projects in Western Australia. Its products include lanthanum, cerium, praseodymium, neodymium, samarium, europium, gadolinium, terbium, and dysprosium. The company also develops and operates advanced material processing and concentration plants, as well as offers corporate services. The company was formerly known as Lynas Corporation Limited and changed its name to Lynas Corporation Limited in November 2020. Lynas Rare Earths Limited was incorporated in 1983 and is based in Perth, Australia.