Head to Head Survey: Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) and Loop Industries (NASDAQ:LOOP)

Loop Industries (NASDAQ:LOOP) and Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE:AXTA) are both materials 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.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Loop Industries and Axalta Coating Systems, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Loop Industries	0	1	0	0	2.00
Axalta Coating Systems	1	8	5	0	2.29

Axalta Coating Systems has a consensus price target of $38.45, suggesting a potential upside of 5.11%. Given Axalta Coating Systems’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Axalta Coating Systems is more favorable than Loop Industries.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Loop Industries and Axalta Coating Systems”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Loop Industries	$510,000.00	21.06	-$12.30 million	($0.25)	-0.88
Axalta Coating Systems	$5.12 billion	1.53	$378.00 million	$1.55	23.60

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

4.9% of Loop Industries shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.3% of Axalta Coating Systems shares are held by institutional investors. 49.7% of Loop Industries shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of Axalta Coating Systems 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.

Volatility and Risk

Loop Industries has a beta of 1.54, suggesting that its share price is 54% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Axalta Coating Systems has a beta of 1.25, suggesting that its share price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Loop Industries and Axalta Coating Systems’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Loop Industries	-2,154.12%	N/A	-146.03%
Axalta Coating Systems	6.46%	21.28%	7.02%

Summary

Axalta Coating Systems beats Loop Industries on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Loop Industries

Loop Industries is a Canadian company developing technology to recycle polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic and polyester fiber waste. Its process is designed to break these materials down into their basic building blocks, which can then be used to make PET resin and polyester intended to have properties comparable to products made from petroleum-based feedstocks. The company says its technology can process waste streams that are difficult to recycle mechanically, including colored and opaque plastics and textile fibers.

About Axalta Coating Systems

Axalta Coating Systems (NYSE: AXTA) develops, manufactures and sells coatings for transportation and industrial applications. Its products include paints and coatings used by vehicle manufacturers, automotive repair shops and businesses that make industrial equipment and consumer goods. The company serves the automotive original-equipment and refinish markets, as well as industrial and mobility customers. Its offerings include liquid and powder coatings, along with color-matching tools and technical support for customers applying and maintaining coated surfaces.