Reviewing General Steel (OTCMKTS:GSIH) and Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC)

Commercial Metals (NYSE:CMC) and General Steel (OTCMKTS:GSIH) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

86.9% of Commercial Metals shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of Commercial Metals shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 53.3% of General Steel shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Commercial Metals and General Steel”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Commercial Metals	$8.39 billion	0.77	$84.66 million	$4.49	12.97
General Steel	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Commercial Metals has higher revenue and earnings than General Steel.

Profitability

This table compares Commercial Metals and General Steel’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Commercial Metals	6.02%	13.54%	6.98%
General Steel	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Commercial Metals and General Steel, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Commercial Metals	0	5	8	0	2.62
General Steel	0	0	0	0	0.00

Commercial Metals presently has a consensus target price of $73.00, indicating a potential upside of 25.33%. Given Commercial Metals’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Commercial Metals is more favorable than General Steel.

Risk & Volatility

Commercial Metals has a beta of 1.47, suggesting that its stock price is 47% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, General Steel has a beta of -1.26, suggesting that its stock price is 226% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Commercial Metals beats General Steel on 9 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Commercial Metals

Commercial Metals Company manufactures, recycles, and fabricates steel and metal products, and related materials and services in the United States, Poland, China, and internationally. It operates through two segments, North America and Europe. The company processes and sells ferrous and nonferrous scrap metals to steel mills and foundries, aluminum sheet and ingot manufacturers, brass and bronze ingot makers, copper refineries and mills, secondary lead smelters, specialty steel mills, high temperature alloy manufacturers, and other consumers. It also manufactures and sells finished long steel products, including reinforcing bar, merchant bar, light structural, and other special sections, as well as semi-finished billets for rerolling and forging applications. In addition, the company provides fabricated rebar used to reinforce concrete primarily in the construction of commercial and non-commercial buildings, hospitals, convention centers, industrial plants, power plants, highways, bridges, arenas, stadiums, and dams; sells and rents construction-related products and equipment to concrete installers and other businesses; and manufactures and sells strength bars for the truck trailer industry, special bar steels for the energy market, and armor plates for military vehicles. Further, it manufactures rebars, merchant bars, and wire rods; and sells fabricated rebars, wire meshes, fabricated meshes, assembled rebar cages, and other fabricated rebar by-products to fabricators, manufacturers, distributors, and construction companies. The company was founded in 1915 and is headquartered in Irving, Texas.

About General Steel

General Steel Holdings, Inc. engages in the business of cell research, development, storage, and cell culture service in the People's Republic of China. General Steel Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 2002 and is headquartered in Beijing, the People's Republic of China.