Quest Resource (NASDAQ:QRHC) & Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor (NYSE:ZWS) Financial Comparison

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor (NYSE:ZWS) and Quest Resource (NASDAQ:QRHC) are both business services companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, risk, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

83.3% of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 48.2% of Quest Resource shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.4% of Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 22.9% of Quest Resource shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor has a beta of 1.04, indicating that its share price is 4% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Quest Resource has a beta of 0.17, indicating that its share price is 83% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor and Quest Resource, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor	0	5	4	0	2.44
Quest Resource	1	2	0	0	1.67

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor presently has a consensus target price of $51.63, indicating a potential upside of 16.30%. Quest Resource has a consensus target price of $2.25, indicating a potential upside of 97.37%. Given Quest Resource’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Quest Resource is more favorable than Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor.

Profitability

This table compares Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor and Quest Resource’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor	11.68%	16.54%	9.82%
Quest Resource	-6.15%	-14.18%	-3.92%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor and Quest Resource”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor	$1.70 billion	4.39	$198.00 million	$1.15	38.60
Quest Resource	$250.22 million	0.10	-$15.38 million	($0.73)	-1.56

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor has higher revenue and earnings than Quest Resource. Quest Resource is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor beats Quest Resource on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Cor

Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation engages in design, procurement, manufacture, and marketing of water management solutions in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It offers water safety and control products, such as backflow preventers, fire system valves, pressure reducing valves, thermostatic mixing valves, PEX pipings, fittings, and installation tools under the Zurn and Wilkins brand names. The company also provides flow systems products comprising point drains, hydrants, fixture carrier systems, chemical drainage systems; and interceptors and separators, acid neutralization systems, and remote monitoring systems under the Zurn and Green Turtle brands. In addition, it develops, manufactures, and markets remote tank monitoring devices, alarms, software, and services. Further, the company offers sensor-operated flush valves under the AquaSense, Aquaflush, and AquaVantage brands; heavy-duty commercial faucets under the AquaSpec brand; water conserving fixtures under the EcoVantage and Zurn One brands; stainless steel products under the Just Manufacturing brand name, which include stainless steel sinks and plumbing fixtures, and various types of sinks, as well as drinking water dispensing and filtration products under the Elkay and Halsey Taylor brands. It distributes to institutional, commercial, waterworks, and residential end markets through independent sales representatives, plumbing wholesalers, and industry-specific distributors in the waterworks, foodservice, industrial, janitorial, sanitation, and sitework industries. The company was formerly known as Zurn Water Solutions Corporation and changed its name to Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation in July 2022. Zurn Elkay Water Solutions Corporation was incorporated in 1892 and is headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

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.