Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) vs. Aqua Metals (NASDAQ:AQMS) Head-To-Head Analysis

Republic Services (NYSE:RSG) and Aqua Metals (NASDAQ:AQMS) are both industrials companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings and institutional ownership.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

57.7% of Republic Services shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 22.0% of Aqua Metals shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of Republic Services shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 7.1% of Aqua Metals shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Republic Services has a beta of 0.4, indicating that its stock price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Aqua Metals has a beta of 0.33, indicating that its stock price is 67% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Republic Services and Aqua Metals, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Republic Services	0	10	12	0	2.55
Aqua Metals	1	0	1	0	2.00

Republic Services presently has a consensus target price of $245.26, suggesting a potential upside of 12.51%. Aqua Metals has a consensus target price of $5.00, suggesting a potential upside of 110.97%. Given Aqua Metals’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Aqua Metals is more favorable than Republic Services.

Profitability

This table compares Republic Services and Aqua Metals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Republic Services	12.94%	18.69%	6.49%
Aqua Metals	N/A	-145.58%	-106.72%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Republic Services and Aqua Metals”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Republic Services	$16.59 billion	4.02	$2.14 billion	$7.06	30.88
Aqua Metals	$30,000.00	281.24	-$22.65 million	($4.72)	-0.50

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

Summary

Republic Services beats Aqua Metals on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Republic Services

Republic Services, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, offers environmental services in the United States and Canada. It is involved in the collection and processing of recyclable, solid waste, and industrial waste materials; transportation and disposal of non-hazardous and hazardous waste streams; and other environmental solutions. Its residential collection services include curbside collection of material for transport to transfer stations, landfills, recycling centers, and organics processing facilities; supply of recycling and waste containers; and renting of compactors. The company also engages in the processing and sale of old corrugated containers, old newsprint, aluminum, glass, and other materials; and provision of landfill services. It serves small-container, large-container, and residential customers. The company was incorporated in 1996 and is based in Phoenix, Arizona.

About Aqua Metals

Aqua Metals, Inc. engages in reinventing metals recycling activities with its patented AquaRefining technology. The company's technology produces metals and alloys that can be returned into the battery manufacturing supply chain markets, as well as sells metals for use in various advanced manufacturing industries. Its AquaRefining, a low-emissions and recycling technology that replaces polluting furnaces and hazardous chemicals with electricity-powered electroplating to recover valuable metals and materials from spent batteries. Aqua Metals, Inc. was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Reno, Nevada.