Ecovyst (NYSE:ECVT) versus Kuraray (OTCMKTS:KURRY) Critical Analysis

Kuraray (OTCMKTS:KURRY) and Ecovyst (NYSE:ECVT) are both materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings and valuation.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

86.7% of Ecovyst shares are held by institutional investors. 1.8% of Ecovyst shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Kuraray and Ecovyst, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Kuraray	1	0	0	0	1.00
Ecovyst	1	1	4	1	2.71

Ecovyst has a consensus target price of $14.00, indicating a potential upside of 31.64%. Given Ecovyst’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Ecovyst is more favorable than Kuraray.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Kuraray and Ecovyst”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Kuraray	$5.41 billion	0.69	$50.04 million	$0.53	69.68
Ecovyst	$723.50 million	1.60	-$71.13 million	$0.32	33.23

Kuraray has higher revenue and earnings than Ecovyst. Ecovyst is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Kuraray, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Kuraray has a beta of 0.05, meaning that its share price is 95% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ecovyst has a beta of 1.08, meaning that its share price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Kuraray and Ecovyst’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Kuraray	2.87%	7.27%	4.17%
Ecovyst	3.72%	14.38%	6.38%

Summary

Ecovyst beats Kuraray on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Kuraray

Kuraray Co., Ltd. is a Japanese specialty chemicals and materials company that develops and manufactures products for industrial and consumer applications. Its portfolio includes polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) resin and fiber, ethylene vinyl alcohol (EVOH) resin, synthetic leather, activated carbon, and specialty chemicals. The company’s materials are used in applications such as packaging, automotive components, construction, electronics, water treatment, and healthcare. Kuraray also produces functional resins, elastomers, fibers, and other performance materials, including products sold under brands such as EVAL, KURALON, and CLARINO.

About Ecovyst

Ecovyst Inc. is a specialty chemicals company that supplies catalysts, materials and services to customers in the refining, chemicals and other industrial sectors. Its businesses include sulfuric acid services and catalyst technologies. Through its Ecoservices business, Ecovyst regenerates spent sulfuric acid for reuse and supplies virgin sulfuric acid. These services support industrial processes, including those used in petroleum refining and chemical manufacturing. The company’s catalyst technologies include zeolite catalysts and silica-based materials used in refining and chemical applications.