Comparing ARQ (NASDAQ:ARQ) & ICL Group (NYSE:ICL)

ARQ (NASDAQ:ARQ) and ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) are both materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, earnings, profitability, dividends, risk and institutional ownership.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares ARQ and ICL Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ARQ	$120.34 million	0.74	-$52.61 million	($1.26)	-1.63
ICL Group	$7.15 billion	0.97	$226.00 million	$0.24	22.35

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

18.5% of ARQ shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 13.4% of ICL Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 20.1% of ARQ shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of ICL Group shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares ARQ and ICL Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ARQ	-42.33%	-2.54%	-1.88%
ICL Group	3.95%	8.40%	4.19%

Risk & Volatility

ARQ has a beta of 2.05, indicating that its share price is 105% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ICL Group has a beta of 0.98, indicating that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for ARQ and ICL Group, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ARQ	1	1	1	0	2.00
ICL Group	0	2	0	0	2.00

ARQ currently has a consensus price target of $5.00, suggesting a potential upside of 143.90%. ICL Group has a consensus price target of $6.00, suggesting a potential upside of 11.84%. Given ARQ’s higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe ARQ is more favorable than ICL Group.

Summary

ICL Group beats ARQ on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ARQ

Arq, Inc. is a holding company. It engages in the provision of environmental and emission control equipment to the power generation industry. The company operates through the following Segments: Refined Coal and Advanced Purification Technologies. The Refined Coal segment includes the Tinuum Group, Tinuum Services, and GWN Manager. The Advanced Purification Technologies segment refers to the sale of Activated Carbon Injection and Dry Sorbent Injection equipment systems, chemical sales, consulting services, and other sales related to the reduction of emissions in the coal-fired electric generation process and the electric utility industry. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Greenwood Village, CO.

About ICL Group

ICL Group Ltd, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty minerals and chemicals company worldwide. It operates in four segments: Industrial Products, Potash, Phosphate Solutions, and Growing Solutions. The Industrial Products segment produces bromine out of a solution that is a by-product of the potash production process, as well as bromine-based compounds; produces various grades of potash, salt, magnesium chloride, and magnesia products; and produces and markets phosphorous-based flame retardants and other phosphorus-based products. The Potash segment extracts potash from the Dead Sea; mines and produces potash and salt; produces polysulphate; produces, markets, and sells magnesium and magnesium alloys, as well as related by-products, including chlorine and sylvinite; and sells salt. The Phosphate Solutions segment uses phosphate commodity products to produce specialty products; produces and markets phosphate-based fertilizers, as well as sulphuric acid, green phosphoric acid, and phosphate fertilizers; and manufactures thermal phosphoric acid for various industrial end markets, such as oral care, cleaning products, paints and coatings, water treatment, asphalt modification, construction, and metal treatment. It also develops and produces functional food ingredients and phosphate additives for use in the processed meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, beverage, and baked goods markets; and produces milk and whey proteins for the food ingredients industry. The Growing Solutions segment develops, manufactures, markets, and sells fertilizers based primarily on nitrogen, potash, and phosphate, including water soluble specialty, liquid, soluble, and controlled-release fertilizers. It sells its products through marketing companies, agents, and distributors. The company was formerly known as Israel Chemicals Ltd. and changed its name to ICL Group Ltd in May 2020. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel.