ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) vs. FUCHS (OTCMKTS:FUPBY) Critical Survey

FUCHS (OTCMKTS:FUPBY) and ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) are both mid-cap materials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, earnings and profitability.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares FUCHS and ICL Group”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
FUCHS	$4.03 billion	1.55	$346.21 million	$0.75	15.88
ICL Group	$7.15 billion	1.00	$226.00 million	$0.24	23.02

FUCHS has higher earnings, but lower revenue than ICL Group. FUCHS is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than ICL Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares FUCHS and ICL Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
FUCHS	9.04%	17.40%	12.30%
ICL Group	3.95%	8.40%	4.19%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for FUCHS and ICL Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
FUCHS	0	2	2	1	2.80
ICL Group	0	2	0	0	2.00

ICL Group has a consensus price target of $6.00, indicating a potential upside of 8.60%. Given ICL Group’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe ICL Group is more favorable than FUCHS.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

13.4% of ICL Group shares are held by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

FUCHS has a beta of 0.92, suggesting that its share price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ICL Group has a beta of 0.98, suggesting that its share price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

FUCHS pays an annual dividend of $0.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. ICL Group pays an annual dividend of $0.17 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. FUCHS pays out 26.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. ICL Group pays out 70.8% 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

FUCHS beats ICL Group on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About FUCHS

Fuchs SE develops, produces, and sells lubricants and related specialties in Europe, the Middle East, Africa, the Asia Pacific, and North and South America. The company offers automotive lubricants, such as biodegradable lubricants, central and mobile hydraulic oils, dry coatings, engine and gear oils, motorcycle/two wheelers, and service fluids, as well as various oils for agriculture sector. It also provides industrial lubricants, including chain lubricants, dry coatings, gear and hydraulic oils, machine oils, open gear lubricants, rapidly biodegradable lubricants, compressor and refrigeration oils, release agents, slideways oils, fluids and industrial oils, textile machine oils, and turbine oils. In addition, the company offers lubricating greases comprising assembly pastes, biodegradable greases, food grade greases, multi-purpose/long-life greases, pastes for extreme temperatures, perfluorinated pastes, and wheel bearing greases, as well as gear boxes, and greases for central lubricating system, extreme temperature, machine tools, plain and roller bearings, rail vehicles, spray cans or rattle cans, and solid lubricants. Further, it provides metal processing lubricants consisting of cleaners, corrosion preventives, cutting and grinding, forming lubricants, and quenching oils; and special application lubricants for application equipment, chain lubrication, dry coatings, food and beverage, gears, sugar processing, railway traffic, plain and roller bearings, glass manufacturing process, hot forming, maintenance, open gears, pastes, release agents, other specialties, special greases, and wind power plants. Additionally, the company offers open gear and surface coating services. The company was formerly known as Fuchs Petrolub SE and changed its name to Fuchs SE in July 2023. Fuchs SE was founded in 1931 and is headquartered in Mannheim, Germany.

About ICL Group

ICL Group Ltd, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty minerals and chemicals company worldwide. It operates in four segments: Industrial Products, Potash, Phosphate Solutions, and Growing Solutions. The Industrial Products segment produces bromine out of a solution that is a by-product of the potash production process, as well as bromine-based compounds; produces various grades of potash, salt, magnesium chloride, and magnesia products; and produces and markets phosphorous-based flame retardants and other phosphorus-based products. The Potash segment extracts potash from the Dead Sea; mines and produces potash and salt; produces polysulphate; produces, markets, and sells magnesium and magnesium alloys, as well as related by-products, including chlorine and sylvinite; and sells salt. The Phosphate Solutions segment uses phosphate commodity products to produce specialty products; produces and markets phosphate-based fertilizers, as well as sulphuric acid, green phosphoric acid, and phosphate fertilizers; and manufactures thermal phosphoric acid for various industrial end markets, such as oral care, cleaning products, paints and coatings, water treatment, asphalt modification, construction, and metal treatment. It also develops and produces functional food ingredients and phosphate additives for use in the processed meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, beverage, and baked goods markets; and produces milk and whey proteins for the food ingredients industry. The Growing Solutions segment develops, manufactures, markets, and sells fertilizers based primarily on nitrogen, potash, and phosphate, including water soluble specialty, liquid, soluble, and controlled-release fertilizers. It sells its products through marketing companies, agents, and distributors. The company was formerly known as Israel Chemicals Ltd. and changed its name to ICL Group Ltd in May 2020. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel.