Contrasting Loop Industries (NASDAQ:LOOP) & 5N Plus (OTCMKTS:FPLSF)

5N Plus (OTCMKTS:FPLSF) and Loop Industries (NASDAQ:LOOP) are both small-cap materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, valuation and earnings.

Risk and Volatility

5N Plus has a beta of 1.88, meaning that its stock price is 88% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Loop Industries has a beta of 1.65, meaning that its stock price is 65% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares 5N Plus and Loop Industries’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
5N Plus	14.14%	26.36%	11.28%
Loop Industries	-2,154.12%	N/A	-146.03%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for 5N Plus and Loop Industries, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
5N Plus	0	1	2	1	3.00
Loop Industries	0	1	0	0	2.00

Institutional and Insider Ownership

0.1% of 5N Plus shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 4.9% of Loop Industries shares are held by institutional investors. 3.9% of 5N Plus shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 49.7% of Loop Industries shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares 5N Plus and Loop Industries”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
5N Plus	$391.06 million	4.48	$50.57 million	$0.70	27.84
Loop Industries	$510,000.00	23.95	-$12.30 million	($0.25)	-1.00

5N Plus has higher revenue and earnings than Loop Industries. Loop Industries is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than 5N Plus, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

5N Plus beats Loop Industries on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About 5N Plus

5N Plus Inc. produces and sells specialty metals and chemicals in North America, Europe, and Asia. It operates through two segments, Specialty Semiconductors and Performance Materials. The company offers semiconductor compounds, semiconductor wafers, metals, epitaxial semiconductor substrates, and solar cells. It also provides active pharmaceutical ingredients, animal feed additives, specialized chemicals, commercial grade metals, alloys, engineered powders, and recycling services. The company serves renewable energy, security, space, pharmaceutical, medical imaging, manufacturing, electronic, consumer, and industrial application markets. 5N Plus Inc. is headquartered in Montreal, Canada.

About Loop Industries

Loop Industries, Inc., a technology company, focuses on depolymerizing waste polyethylene terephthalate PET plastics and polyester fibers, including plastic bottles, packaging, carpets and textiles of any color, transparency and even ocean plastics that have been degraded by the sun and salt, to its base building blocks. Its polymerized monomers into virgin-quality PET resins for use in food-grade plastic packaging, such as plastic bottles for water and carbonated soft drinks, and containers for food and other consumer products; and polyester fibers, including textiles, clothing, and apparel. The company was incorporated in 2010 and is based in Terrebonne, Canada.