Waste Management (NYSE:WM – Get Free Report) and 374Water (NASDAQ:SCWO – Get Free Report) are both business services companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and earnings.
Volatility and Risk
Waste Management has a beta of 0.59, suggesting that its share price is 41% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, 374Water has a beta of -0.07, suggesting that its share price is 107% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Waste Management and 374Water”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Waste Management | $22.06 billion | 4.01 | $2.75 billion | $6.35 | 34.61 |
| 374Water | $440,000.00 | 96.14 | -$12.43 million | ($1.20) | -2.08 |
Waste Management has higher revenue and earnings than 374Water. 374Water is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Waste Management, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Waste Management and 374Water’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Waste Management | 10.35% | 33.00% | 6.52% |
| 374Water | -911.15% | -160.15% | -118.22% |
Insider & Institutional Ownership
80.4% of Waste Management shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 12.2% of 374Water shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Waste Management shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 16.3% of 374Water shares are held by 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 Waste Management and 374Water, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Waste Management | 0 | 9 | 18 | 3 | 2.80 |
| 374Water | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.00 |
Waste Management presently has a consensus target price of $250.77, indicating a potential upside of 14.12%. Given Waste Management’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Waste Management is more favorable than 374Water.
Summary
Waste Management beats 374Water on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Waste Management
Waste Management, Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the provision of environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers in the United States and Canada. It offers collection services, including picking up and transporting waste and recyclable materials from where it was generated to a transfer station, material recovery facility (MRF), or disposal site; and owns and operates transfer stations, as well as owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity. As of December 31, 2022, the company owned or operated 254 solid waste landfills, five secure hazardous waste landfills, 97 MRFs, and 337 transfer stations. It also provides materials processing and commodities recycling services at its MRFs, where cardboard, paper, glass, metals, plastics, construction and demolition materials, and other recycling commodities are recovered for resale or redirected for other purposes; recycling brokerage services, such as managing the marketing of recyclable materials for third parties; and other strategic business solutions. In addition, the company offers construction and remediation services; services related with the disposal of fly ash, and residue generated from the combustion of coal and other fuel stocks; in-plant services comprising full-service waste management solutions and consulting services; and specialized disposal services for oil and gas exploration and production operations. The company was formerly known as USA Waste Services, Inc. and changed its name to Waste Management, Inc. in 1998. Waste Management, Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
About 374Water
374Water Inc. provides a technology that transforms wet wastes into recoverable resources in the United States. The company transforms wet wastes, including sewage sludge, biosolids, food waste, hazardous and non-hazardous waste, and forever chemicals. It offers AirSCWO systems, a waste stream treatment system based on supercritical water oxidation that are used to treat various hazardous and non-hazardous waste streams. It serves Industrial, agricultural, defense, oil and gas, waste management, sanitation project, environmental remediation and compliance, and municipal markets. 374Water Inc. is based in Durham, North Carolina.
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