Reviewing Avalon Advanced Materials (OTCMKTS:AVLNF) & Metals Acquisition (NYSE:MTAL)

Avalon Advanced Materials (OTCMKTS:AVLNF) and Metals Acquisition (NYSE:MTAL) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, valuation, dividends, earnings, profitability and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Avalon Advanced Materials and Metals Acquisition’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Avalon Advanced Materials	-13,866.67%	-5.30%	-4.96%
Metals Acquisition	N/A	N/A	N/A

Volatility and Risk

Avalon Advanced Materials has a beta of 1.4, indicating that its share price is 40% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Metals Acquisition has a beta of 0.15, indicating that its share price is 85% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

87.5% of Metals Acquisition shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.4% of Avalon Advanced Materials shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.8% of Metals Acquisition shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Avalon Advanced Materials and Metals Acquisition, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Avalon Advanced Materials	0	0	0	0	0.00
Metals Acquisition	0	1	1	0	2.50

Metals Acquisition has a consensus price target of $14.75, suggesting a potential upside of 37.02%. Given Metals Acquisition’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Metals Acquisition is more favorable than Avalon Advanced Materials.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Avalon Advanced Materials and Metals Acquisition”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Avalon Advanced Materials	$80,000.00	176.11	-$470,000.00	N/A	N/A
Metals Acquisition	$159.00 million	5.01	-$144.55 million	N/A	N/A

Avalon Advanced Materials has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Metals Acquisition.

Summary

Metals Acquisition beats Avalon Advanced Materials on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Avalon Advanced Materials

Avalon Advanced Materials Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, evaluation, and development of rare metal and mineral properties primarily in Canada. The company focuses on exploring lithium, tantalum, cesium, indium, gallium, germanium, tin, yttrium, and zirconium deposits, as well as rare earth elements. Its flagship project is the 100% owned Separation Rapids Lithium Project consisting of nineteen mineral claims and one mining lease covering an area of approximately 4,414 hectares located in the Paterson Lake Area, Kenora Mining Division, Ontario. The company was formerly known as Avalon Rare Metals Inc. and changed its name to Avalon Advanced Materials Inc. in February 2016. Avalon Advanced Materials Inc. is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

About Metals Acquisition

Metals Acquisition Limited focuses on mining and production of copper and silver. It operates the CSA copper mine in Cobar, Australia. The company was incorporated in 2022 and is headquartered in Saint Helier, Jersey.