Critical Contrast: McEwen (NYSE:MUX) versus Lynas Rare Earths (OTCMKTS:LYSDY)

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

Risk and Volatility

McEwen has a beta of 1.19, meaning that its share price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lynas Rare Earths has a beta of 0.87, meaning that its share price is 13% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for McEwen and Lynas Rare Earths, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
McEwen	0	2	4	0	2.67
Lynas Rare Earths	0	2	0	3	3.20

McEwen presently has a consensus target price of $29.83, suggesting a potential upside of 41.60%. Given McEwen’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe McEwen is more favorable than Lynas Rare Earths.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
McEwen	31.40%	13.65%	9.05%
Lynas Rare Earths	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

17.0% of McEwen shares are owned by institutional investors. 14.8% of McEwen shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares McEwen 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
McEwen	$197.55 million	6.37	$34.43 million	$1.18	17.85
Lynas Rare Earths	$356.61 million	37.88	$5.17 million	N/A	N/A

McEwen has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Lynas Rare Earths.

Summary

McEwen beats Lynas Rare Earths on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About McEwen

McEwen Mining Inc. engages in the exploration, development, production, and sale of gold and silver. It also explores for copper deposits. The company owns 100% interests in the El Gallo and Fenix projects located in Mexico; and the Black Fox Mine and Stock Mill, Grey Fox, and Froome and Tamarack properties in Canada. It also owns interests in the Fuller, Davidson-Tisdale, Buffalo Ankerite, and Paymaster exploration properties located in Canada; and a 49% interest in the San José mine located in Argentina. In addition, the company owns 100% interests in the Gold Bar and Tonkin properties located in Eureka County, Nevada; and interests in the Los Azules copper project located in the cordilleran region in the province of San Juan, Argentina. The company was formerly known as US Gold Corporation and changed its name to McEwen Mining Inc. in January 2012. McEwen Mining Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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.