Critical Contrast: Gatos Silver (NYSE:GATO) versus U.S. GoldMining (NASDAQ:USGO)

Gatos Silver (NYSE:GATO) and U.S. GoldMining (NASDAQ:USGO) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, earnings and profitability.

Risk & Volatility

Gatos Silver has a beta of 1.95, meaning that its stock price is 95% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, U.S. GoldMining has a beta of 2.43, meaning that its stock price is 143% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

44.8% of Gatos Silver shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.5% of U.S. GoldMining shares are held by institutional investors. 3.8% of Gatos Silver shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.0% of U.S. GoldMining shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Gatos Silver and U.S. GoldMining’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Gatos Silver	N/A	10.37%	9.94%
U.S. GoldMining	N/A	-71.04%	-65.02%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Gatos Silver and U.S. GoldMining, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Gatos Silver	0	3	0	1	2.50
U.S. GoldMining	0	0	1	0	3.00

Gatos Silver presently has a consensus price target of $13.88, suggesting a potential downside of 3.65%. U.S. GoldMining has a consensus price target of $26.50, suggesting a potential upside of 153.10%. Given U.S. GoldMining’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe U.S. GoldMining is more favorable than Gatos Silver.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Gatos Silver and U.S. GoldMining”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Gatos Silver	N/A	N/A	$12.86 million	$0.49	29.39
U.S. GoldMining	N/A	N/A	-$9.36 million	N/A	N/A

Summary

Gatos Silver beats U.S. GoldMining on 6 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Gatos Silver

Gatos Silver, Inc. engages in the exploration, development, and production of precious metals. It primarily explores for silver deposits. The company also explores for zinc, lead, copper, and gold ores. Its flagship asset is the Los Gatos District, including the Cerro Los Gatos mine in Chihuahua, Mexico. The company was formerly known as Sunshine Silver Mining & Refining Corporation and changed its name to Gatos Silver, Inc. in October 2020. Gatos Silver, Inc. was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About U.S. GoldMining

U.S. GoldMining Inc., an exploration stage company, engages in the exploration and development of mineral properties in the United States. The company's primary asset is the 100%-owned Whistler exploration property, a gold-copper exploration project comprising mining claims totaling 53,700 acres located in Yentna Mining District, Alaska. The company was incorporated in 2015 and is based in Vancouver, Canada. U.S. GoldMining Inc. operates as a subsidiary of GoldMining Inc.