Analyzing Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) and Rayonier Advanced Materials (NYSE:RYAM)

Rayonier Advanced Materials (NYSE:RYAM) and Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) are both materials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, risk, institutional ownership, dividends and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Rayonier Advanced Materials and Air Products and Chemicals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rayonier Advanced Materials	-9.53%	-46.19%	-7.28%
Air Products and Chemicals	-0.38%	16.87%	7.18%

Risk and Volatility

Rayonier Advanced Materials has a beta of 1.76, indicating that its share price is 76% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Air Products and Chemicals has a beta of 0.75, indicating that its share price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

68.6% of Rayonier Advanced Materials shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.7% of Air Products and Chemicals shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.2% of Rayonier Advanced Materials shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.9% of Air Products and Chemicals shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Rayonier Advanced Materials and Air Products and Chemicals, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rayonier Advanced Materials	1	1	1	0	2.00
Air Products and Chemicals	0	6	10	1	2.71

Rayonier Advanced Materials currently has a consensus price target of $13.00, indicating a potential upside of 51.00%. Air Products and Chemicals has a consensus price target of $332.76, indicating a potential upside of 7.47%. Given Rayonier Advanced Materials’ higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Rayonier Advanced Materials is more favorable than Air Products and Chemicals.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Rayonier Advanced Materials and Air Products and Chemicals”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rayonier Advanced Materials	$1.47 billion	0.40	-$420.67 million	($2.10)	-4.10
Air Products and Chemicals	$12.04 billion	5.73	-$394.50 million	($0.22)	-1,407.41

Air Products and Chemicals has higher revenue and earnings than Rayonier Advanced Materials. Air Products and Chemicals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Rayonier Advanced Materials, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Air Products and Chemicals beats Rayonier Advanced Materials on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rayonier Advanced Materials

Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. manufactures and sells cellulose specialty products in the United States, China, Latin America, Canada, Japan, Europe, Latin America, other Asian countries, and internationally. It operates through High Purity Cellulose, Paperboard, and High-Yield Pulp segments. The company’s products include cellulose specialties, which are natural polymers that are used as raw materials to manufacture a range of consumer-oriented products, such as liquid crystal displays, impact-resistant plastics, thickeners for food products, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, cigarette filters, high-tenacity rayon yarn for tires and industrial hoses, food casings, paints, and lacquers. It also offers commodity products, such as commodity viscose pulp used in woven applications, including rayon textiles for clothing and other fabrics, as well as in non-woven applications comprising baby wipes, cosmetic and personal wipes, industrial wipes, and mattress ticking; and absorbent materials consisting of fluff fibers that are used as an absorbent medium in disposable baby diapers, feminine hygiene products, incontinence pads, convalescent bed pads, industrial towels and wipes, and non-woven fabrics. In addition, the company provides paperboards for packaging, printing documents, brochures, promotional materials, paperback books and catalog covers, file folders, tags, and lottery tickets; and high-yield pulps to produces hardwood aspen, maple, and birch species for paperboard, packaging, printing and writing papers, and various other paper products. The company was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.

About Air Products and Chemicals

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. provides atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, equipment, and related services in the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, India, and internationally. The company produces atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, and argon; process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and syngas; and specialty gases for customers in various industries, including refining, chemical, manufacturing, electronics, energy production, medical, food, and metals. It also designs and manufactures equipment for air separation, hydrocarbon recovery and purification, natural gas liquefaction, and liquid helium and liquid hydrogen transport and storage. The company was founded in 1940 and is headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania.