Comparing International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) & ARQ (NASDAQ:ARQ)

International Flavors & Fragrances (NYSE:IFF) and ARQ (NASDAQ:ARQ) are both materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends and valuation.

Risk and Volatility

International Flavors & Fragrances has a beta of 0.86, indicating that its stock price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ARQ has a beta of 2.12, indicating that its stock price is 112% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares International Flavors & Fragrances and ARQ”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
International Flavors & Fragrances	$10.89 billion	2.16	-$361.00 million	$1.09	84.41
ARQ	$120.34 million	0.67	-$52.61 million	($1.26)	-1.46

ARQ has lower revenue, but higher earnings than International Flavors & Fragrances. ARQ is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than International Flavors & Fragrances, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares International Flavors & Fragrances and ARQ’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
International Flavors & Fragrances	2.78%	7.11%	3.96%
ARQ	-42.33%	-2.54%	-1.88%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for International Flavors & Fragrances and ARQ, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
International Flavors & Fragrances	0	6	12	1	2.74
ARQ	1	1	1	0	2.00

International Flavors & Fragrances presently has a consensus target price of $94.28, indicating a potential upside of 2.48%. ARQ has a consensus target price of $5.00, indicating a potential upside of 171.74%. Given ARQ’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe ARQ is more favorable than International Flavors & Fragrances.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

96.0% of International Flavors & Fragrances shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 18.5% of ARQ shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.1% of International Flavors & Fragrances shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 20.1% of ARQ shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

International Flavors & Fragrances beats ARQ on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About International Flavors & Fragrances

International Flavors & Fragrances, Inc. engages in the manufacture and supply of flavors and fragrances used in the food, beverage, personal care, and household products industries. It operates through the following segments: Nourish, Health & Biosciences, Scent and Pharma Solutions. The Nourish segment consists of legacy Taste segment combined with N&B’s Food & Beverage division and the food protection business of N&B’s Health & Biosciences division. The Health & Biosciences business consists of a biotechnology-driven portfolio of enzymes, food cultures, probiotics and specialty ingredients for food, home and personal care, and health and wellness applications. The Scent business creates fragrance compounds, fragrance ingredients and cosmetic ingredients that are integral elements in the world’s finest perfumes and best-known household and personal care products. The Pharma Solutions business produces a vast portfolio including cellulosics and seaweed-based pharma excipients, used to improve the functionality and delivery of active pharmaceutical ingredients, including controlled or modified drug release formulations, and enabling. The company was founded in 1833 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

About ARQ

Arq, Inc. is a holding company. It engages in the provision of environmental and emission control equipment to the power generation industry. The company operates through the following Segments: Refined Coal and Advanced Purification Technologies. The Refined Coal segment includes the Tinuum Group, Tinuum Services, and GWN Manager. The Advanced Purification Technologies segment refers to the sale of Activated Carbon Injection and Dry Sorbent Injection equipment systems, chemical sales, consulting services, and other sales related to the reduction of emissions in the coal-fired electric generation process and the electric utility industry. The company was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Greenwood Village, CO.