Critical Analysis: DuPont de Nemours (NYSE:DD) and Northern Technologies International (NASDAQ:NTIC)

Northern Technologies International (NASDAQ:NTIC) and DuPont de Nemours (NYSE:DD) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability and dividends.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Northern Technologies International and DuPont de Nemours”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Northern Technologies International	$84.24 million	0.85	$20,000.00	($0.01)	-751.50
DuPont de Nemours	$12.39 billion	1.38	$703.00 million	($1.84)	-22.09

DuPont de Nemours has higher revenue and earnings than Northern Technologies International. Northern Technologies International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than DuPont de Nemours, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Northern Technologies International has a beta of 0.19, suggesting that its stock price is 81% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, DuPont de Nemours has a beta of 1.09, suggesting that its stock price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Northern Technologies International and DuPont de Nemours, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Northern Technologies International	2	0	0	0	1.00
DuPont de Nemours	2	3	10	0	2.53

DuPont de Nemours has a consensus target price of $42.88, suggesting a potential upside of 5.48%. Given DuPont de Nemours’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe DuPont de Nemours is more favorable than Northern Technologies International.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

32.9% of Northern Technologies International shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 74.0% of DuPont de Nemours shares are held by institutional investors. 24.9% of Northern Technologies International shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of DuPont de Nemours shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Northern Technologies International and DuPont de Nemours’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Northern Technologies International	0.02%	-0.02%	-0.01%
DuPont de Nemours	-6.17%	7.81%	4.98%

Dividends

Northern Technologies International pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.5%. DuPont de Nemours pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Northern Technologies International pays out -400.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. DuPont de Nemours pays out -43.5% 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.

Summary

DuPont de Nemours beats Northern Technologies International on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Northern Technologies International

Northern Technologies International Corporation develops and markets rust and corrosion inhibiting solutions in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and internationally. It offers rust and corrosion inhibiting products, such as plastic and paper packaging, liquids, coatings, rust removers, cleaners, diffusers, and engineered solutions designed for the oil and gas industry under the ZERUST brand. The company provides a portfolio of bio-based and certified compostable polymer resin compounds and finished products under the Natur-Tec brand. In addition, it offers on-site and technical consulting for rust and corrosion prevention issues. It sells its products and services to automotive, electronics, electrical, mechanical, military, retail consumer, and oil and gas markets through direct sales force, network of independent distributors, agents, manufacturer's sales representatives, and strategic partners. The company was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in Circle Pines, Minnesota.

About DuPont de Nemours

DuPont de Nemours, Inc. provides technology-based materials and solutions in the United States, Canada, the Asia Pacific, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It operates through Electronics & Industrial, Water & Protection, and Corporate & Other segments. The Electronics & Industrial segment supplies materials and solutions for the fabrication of semiconductors and integrated circuits. This segment also provides semiconductor and advanced packaging materials; dielectric and metallization solutions for chip packaging; and silicones for light emitting diode packaging and semiconductor applications; permanent and process chemistries for the fabrication of printed circuit boards to include laminates and substrates, and electroless and electrolytic metallization solutions, and electromagnetic shielding and thermal management solutions, as well as patterning solutions, and materials and metallization processes for metal finishing, decorative, and industrial applications. In addition, it offers various materials to manufacture rigid and flexible displays for organic light emitting diode, and other display applications; provides high performance parts, and specialty silicone elastomers, and lubricants to automotive, aerospace, electronics, industrial, and healthcare markets; and photopolymer plates and platemaking systems used in flexographic printing, and digital inks for textile, commercial, and home-office printing applications. The Water & Protection segment provides engineered products and integrated systems for worker safety, water purification and separation, transportation, energy, medical packaging and building materials. The Corporate & Other segment offers auto adhesives and fluids; Multibase; and Tedlar products. The company was formerly known as DowDuPont Inc. and changed its name to DuPont de Nemours, Inc. in June 2019. DuPont de Nemours, Inc. was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware.