Quest Resource (NASDAQ:QRHC – Get Free Report) and Perma-Fix Environmental Services (NASDAQ:PESI – Get Free Report) are both small-cap industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability and earnings.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
48.2% of Quest Resource shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.5% of Perma-Fix Environmental Services shares are owned by institutional investors. 19.6% of Quest Resource shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 8.4% of Perma-Fix Environmental Services shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.
Risk & Volatility
Quest Resource has a beta of 0.17, indicating that its stock price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Perma-Fix Environmental Services has a beta of 0.47, indicating that its stock price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Recommendations
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Quest Resource | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1.50 |
| Perma-Fix Environmental Services | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 |
Profitability
This table compares Quest Resource and Perma-Fix Environmental Services’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Quest Resource | -7.07% | -14.75% | -3.78% |
| Perma-Fix Environmental Services | -37.04% | -35.46% | -20.22% |
Earnings & Valuation
This table compares Quest Resource and Perma-Fix Environmental Services”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Quest Resource | $250.22 million | 0.11 | -$15.38 million | ($0.82) | -1.66 |
| Perma-Fix Environmental Services | $61.67 million | 5.39 | -$13.78 million | ($1.13) | -13.85 |
Perma-Fix Environmental Services has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Quest Resource. Perma-Fix Environmental Services is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Quest Resource, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Quest Resource beats Perma-Fix Environmental Services on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Quest Resource
Quest Resource Holding Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, provides solutions for the reuse, recycling, and disposal of various waste streams and recyclables in the United States. The company provides disposal and recycling services for motor oil and automotive lubricants, oil filters, scrap tires, oily water, goods destruction, food waste, meat renderings, cooking oil and grease trap waste, plastics, cardboard, metal, glass, mixed paper, construction debris, as well as a large variety of regulated and non-regulated solid, liquid, and gas wastes. It offers antifreeze and windshield washer fluid, dumpster and compacting equipment, and other minor ancillary services. In addition, the company offers landfill diversion services. Its services focus on the waste streams and recyclables from big box, grocers, and other retailers; automotive maintenance, quick lube, dealerships, and collision repair; transportation, logistics, and internal fleet operators; manufacturing plants; multi-family and commercial properties; restaurant chains and food operations; and construction and demolition projects. The company markets its services to automotive, manufacturing, hospitality and retail, construction and demolition, and commercial and multi-family property management industries through direct sales force and strategic partnerships. The company was formerly known as Infinity Resources Holdings Corp. and changed its name to Quest Resource Holding Corporation in October 2013. Quest Resource Holding Corporation is headquartered in The Colony, Texas.
About Perma-Fix Environmental Services
Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as an environmental and technology know-how company in the United States. The company through Treatment and Services segments. The Treatment segment offers nuclear, low-level radioactive, mixed waste, hazardous and non-hazardous waste treatment, and processing and disposal services through treatment and storage facilities. This segment is also involved in the research and development activities to identify, develop, and implement waste processing techniques for problematic waste streams. The Services segment provides technical services, including professional radiological measurement and site survey of government and commercial installations; health physics services; integrated occupational safety and health services; and consulting, engineering, project and waste management, environmental, decontamination and decommissioning (D&D) field, technical and management personnel and services; and waste management services. This segment also offers nuclear services, including D&D of government and commercial facilities, including engineering, technology applications, specialty services, logistics, transportation, processing, and disposal; and license termination support, such as project management, planning, characterization, waste stream identification and delineation, remediation/demolition, compliance demonstration, final status survey, reporting, transportation, disposal and emergency response. In addition, it maintains, services, maintains, calibrates, and sources health physics, IH and customized nuclear, environmental, and occupational safety and health instruments. The company provides its services to research institutions, commercial companies, public utilities, and governmental agencies through direct sales to customers or through intermediaries. Perma-Fix Environmental Services, Inc. was incorporated in 1990 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.
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