Financial Analysis: Paladin Energy (OTCMKTS:PALAF) & Alpha Metallurgical Resources (NYSE:AMR)

Paladin Energy (OTCMKTS:PALAF) and Alpha Metallurgical Resources (NYSE:AMR) are both mid-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation and risk.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Paladin Energy and Alpha Metallurgical Resources”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Paladin Energy	$177.68 million	24.78	-$44.64 million	($0.11)	-89.09
Alpha Metallurgical Resources	$2.96 billion	0.76	$187.58 million	($3.56)	-49.32

Alpha Metallurgical Resources has higher revenue and earnings than Paladin Energy. Paladin Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Alpha Metallurgical Resources, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Paladin Energy and Alpha Metallurgical Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Paladin Energy	-16.42%	-4.89%	-3.48%
Alpha Metallurgical Resources	-2.09%	-2.88%	-1.95%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

0.0% of Paladin Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.3% of Alpha Metallurgical Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 16.0% of Alpha Metallurgical Resources shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Paladin Energy and Alpha Metallurgical Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Paladin Energy	0	3	0	0	2.00
Alpha Metallurgical Resources	2	3	0	0	1.60

Paladin Energy presently has a consensus target price of $9.05, indicating a potential downside of 7.65%. Alpha Metallurgical Resources has a consensus target price of $204.00, indicating a potential upside of 16.18%. Given Alpha Metallurgical Resources’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Alpha Metallurgical Resources is more favorable than Paladin Energy.

Volatility & Risk

Paladin Energy has a beta of 1.36, indicating that its stock price is 36% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Alpha Metallurgical Resources has a beta of 0.78, indicating that its stock price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Alpha Metallurgical Resources beats Paladin Energy on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Paladin Energy

Paladin Energy Ltd develops, explores for, owns, and operates uranium mines in Australia, Canada, and Africa. The company operates through Exploration, Namibia, and Australia segments. Its flagship project is the Langer Heinrich mine located in the Namib Desert in Namibia. The company was formerly known as Paladin Resources Ltd and changed its name to Paladin Energy Limited in November 2007. Paladin Energy Ltd was incorporated in 1993 and is headquartered in Perth, Australia.

About Alpha Metallurgical Resources

Alpha Metallurgical Resources, Inc., a mining company, produces, processes, and sells met and thermal coal in Virginia and West Virginia. The company offers metallurgical coal products. It operates twenty-two active mines and nine coal preparation and load-out facilities. The company was formerly known as Contura Energy, Inc. and changed its name to Alpha Metallurgical Resources, Inc. in February 2021. Alpha Metallurgical Resources, Inc. was incorporated in 2016 and is headquartered in Bristol, Tennessee.