Comparing Standard Lithium (NYSE:SLI) and Loop Industries (NASDAQ:LOOP)

Standard Lithium (NYSE:SLI) and Loop Industries (NASDAQ:LOOP) are both small-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and dividends.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

16.8% of Standard Lithium shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 4.9% of Loop Industries shares are held by institutional investors. 3.7% of Standard Lithium shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 49.8% of Loop Industries shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Standard Lithium and Loop Industries”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Standard Lithium	N/A	N/A	$108.82 million	($0.23)	-9.67
Loop Industries	$101,000.00	723.91	-$21.09 million	($0.44)	-3.50

Standard Lithium has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Loop Industries. Standard Lithium is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Loop Industries, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Standard Lithium has a beta of 1.89, suggesting that its share price is 89% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Loop Industries has a beta of 1.48, suggesting that its share price is 48% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Standard Lithium and Loop Industries, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Standard Lithium	0	0	1	0	3.00
Loop Industries	0	0	0	0	N/A

Standard Lithium presently has a consensus price target of $3.50, suggesting a potential upside of 57.30%. Given Standard Lithium’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Standard Lithium is more favorable than Loop Industries.

Profitability

This table compares Standard Lithium and Loop Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Standard Lithium	N/A	-15.67%	-14.05%
Loop Industries	-14,713.74%	-118.35%	-82.70%

Summary

Standard Lithium beats Loop Industries on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Standard Lithium

Standard Lithium Ltd. explores for, develops, and processes lithium brine properties in the United States. Its flagship project is the Lanxess project with area of approximately 150,000 acres located in southern Arkansas. The company was formerly known as Patriot Petroleum Corp. and changed its name to Standard Lithium Ltd. in December 2016. Standard Lithium Ltd. was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About Loop Industries

Loop Industries, Inc., a technology company, focuses on depolymerizing waste polyethylene terephthalate PET plastics and polyester fibers, including plastic bottles, packaging, carpets and textiles of any color, transparency and even ocean plastics that have been degraded by the sun and salt, to its base building blocks. Its polymerized monomers into virgin-quality PET resins for use in food-grade plastic packaging, such as plastic bottles for water and carbonated soft drinks, and containers for food and other consumer products; and polyester fibers, including textiles, clothing, and apparel. The company was incorporated in 2010 and is based in Terrebonne, Canada.