Head-To-Head Contrast: Westlake (NYSE:WLK) versus Novozymes A/S (OTCMKTS:NVZMY)

Novozymes A/S (OTCMKTS:NVZMY) and Westlake (NYSE:WLK) are both materials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, valuation, risk and profitability.

Volatility and Risk

Novozymes A/S has a beta of 0.93, suggesting that its share price is 7% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Westlake has a beta of 0.63, suggesting that its share price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Novozymes A/S pays an annual dividend of $0.39 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. Westlake pays an annual dividend of $2.13 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Novozymes A/S pays out 24.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Westlake pays out -22.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Westlake has raised its dividend for 21 consecutive years. Westlake is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Novozymes A/S and Westlake”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Novozymes A/S	$4.70 billion	5.73	$660.28 million	$1.58	41.15
Westlake	$11.17 billion	0.77	-$1.51 billion	($9.58)	-7.06

Novozymes A/S has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Westlake. Westlake is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Novozymes A/S, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.0% of Novozymes A/S shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 28.4% of Westlake shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of Westlake shares are held by company 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 Novozymes A/S and Westlake’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Novozymes A/S	14.70%	6.54%	4.34%
Westlake	-10.94%	0.93%	0.44%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Novozymes A/S and Westlake, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Novozymes A/S	0	1	0	2	3.33
Westlake	1	10	4	0	2.20

Westlake has a consensus price target of $92.43, indicating a potential upside of 36.75%. Given Westlake’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Westlake is more favorable than Novozymes A/S.

Summary

Novozymes A/S beats Westlake on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Novozymes A/S

Novozymes A/S produces and sells industrial enzymes, microorganisms, and probiotics in Denmark, rest of Europe, North America, Asia Pacific, the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and internationally. The company offers protein solutions for the food and beverage industry. It also offers industrial hygiene, drain openers, hard surface, medical cleaning, septic tanks, ware washing, and professional laundry services. In addition, the company provides dishwashing, softener, microbial and medical cleaning services. Further, it provides corn, cotton, forages, peanuts, pulses, soybeans, wheat, small grains, bioyield, and biocontrol solutions; warm water species, recirculating aquaculture system; animal health and nutrition solutions; fiber modification, bleach boosting, deposit control, and starch modification solutions. Additionally, the company provides carbon capture, leather and textiles solutions; enzyme solutions, including corn and wheat separation, liquefaction, saccharification, filtration, isomerization, maltose, and specialties solutions; warm water species and recirculating aquaculture system solutions; human health solutions, comprising brain, oral, protective and immune, and gastrointestinal health solutions; ethanol, biodiesel, renewable diesel, education, wastewater, and sewage sludge, and renewable diesel solutions; agriculture and industry, biogas food waste, food waste, biocatalysis, cell culture, diagnostics, enzyme, and biogas solutions. Furthermore, it provides lipases, proteases, oxidoreductases, and carbohydrases. Novozymes A/S was founded in 1925 and is based in Bagsvaerd, Denmark.

About Westlake

Westlake Corporation engages in the manufacture and marketing of performance and essential materials, and housing and infrastructure products in the United States, Canada, Germany, China, Mexico, Brazil, France, Italy, Taiwan, and internationally. The company operates through two segments: Performance and Essential Materials and Housing and Infrastructure Products. The Performance and Essential Materials segment offers ethylene, polyethylene, styrene, chlorinated derivative products, ethylene dichloride, vinyl chloride monomer, polyvinyl chloride (PVC), epoxy specialty resins, and base epoxy resins and intermediaries, as well as chlor-alkali, such as chlorine and caustic soda. The Housing and Infrastructure Products segment provides residential PVC sidings; PVC trim and mouldings; architectural stone veneers; windows; PVC decking; PVC films for various inflatables, wallcovering, and tape and roofing applications; polymer composite and cement roof tiles; PVC pipes and fittings for various water, sewer, electrical, and industrial applications; PVC compounds used in various housing, medical, and automobile products; and consumer and commercial products, such as landscape edging; industrial, home, and office matting; marine dock edging; and masonry joint controls. It offers its products to chemical processors, plastics fabricators, small construction contractors, municipalities, and supply warehouses for use in various consumer and industrial markets, including residential construction, flexible and rigid packaging, automotive products, healthcare products, water treatment, wind turbines, and coatings, as well as other durable and non-durable goods. The company was formerly known as Westlake Chemical Corporation and changed its name to Westlake Corporation in February 2022. Westlake Corporation was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Westlake Corporation operates as a subsidiary of TTWF LP.