Centerra Gold (NYSE:CGAU) & Loncor Gold (OTCMKTS:LONCF) Critical Comparison

Loncor Gold (OTCMKTS:LONCF) and Centerra Gold (NYSE:CGAU) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership and dividends.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

55.4% of Centerra Gold shares are held by institutional investors. 22.1% of Loncor Gold shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of Centerra Gold shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Loncor Gold and Centerra Gold”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Loncor Gold	N/A	N/A	-$4.16 million	($0.02)	-46.25
Centerra Gold	$1.21 billion	1.96	$80.39 million	$0.33	35.83

Centerra Gold has higher revenue and earnings than Loncor Gold. Loncor Gold is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Centerra Gold, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Loncor Gold and Centerra Gold, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Loncor Gold	0	0	0	0	0.00
Centerra Gold	0	6	3	2	2.64

Centerra Gold has a consensus price target of $14.17, indicating a potential upside of 19.82%. Given Centerra Gold’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Centerra Gold is more favorable than Loncor Gold.

Profitability

This table compares Loncor Gold and Centerra Gold’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Loncor Gold	N/A	-19.72%	-17.23%
Centerra Gold	26.35%	10.47%	7.60%

Risk and Volatility

Loncor Gold has a beta of 0.66, suggesting that its share price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Centerra Gold has a beta of 0.88, suggesting that its share price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Centerra Gold beats Loncor Gold on 13 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Loncor Gold

Loncor Gold Inc., a gold exploration company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of precious metal projects in the Ngayu greenstone belt in the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Canada. It explores for gold and platinum deposits. The company holds 84.68% interest in the Adumbi project, which consist of two mining licenses covering an area of 361 square kilometers located within the Archaean Ngayu Greenstone Belt in the Ituri and Haut Uele provinces in northeastern Congo. It also holds 100% interest in the Isiro properties that consist of 11 exploration permits covering an area of 1,884 square kilometers situated in the province of Haut Uele, northeastern Congo. In addition, Loncor Gold Inc. owns interest in North Kivu, Ngayu, Devon, Navarro, and Yindi projects. The company was formerly known as Loncor Resources Inc. and changed its name to Loncor Gold Inc. in June 2021. Loncor Gold Inc. was founded in 1993 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

About Centerra Gold

Centerra Gold Inc., a gold mining company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and operation of gold and copper properties in North America, Turkey, and internationally. The company explores for gold, copper, and molybdenum deposits. Its flagship projects are the 100% owned Mount Milligan gold-copper mine located in British Columbia, Canada; and the Öksüt gold mine located in Turkey. The company was incorporated in 2002 and is based in Toronto, Canada.