McEwen (NYSE:MUX – Get Free Report) and Lithium Americas (NYSE:LAC – Get Free Report) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, risk, dividends and earnings.
Institutional and Insider Ownership
17.0% of McEwen shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.1% of McEwen shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Lithium Americas shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares McEwen and Lithium Americas”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| McEwen | $174.48 million | 8.37 | -$43.69 million | ($0.22) | -121.80 |
| Lithium Americas | N/A | N/A | -$42.53 million | ($1.05) | -6.12 |
Lithium Americas has lower revenue, but higher earnings than McEwen. McEwen is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Lithium Americas, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk & Volatility
McEwen has a beta of 1.08, suggesting that its stock price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lithium Americas has a beta of 1.57, suggesting that its stock price is 57% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for McEwen and Lithium Americas, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| McEwen | 1 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 2.83 |
| Lithium Americas | 1 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 2.15 |
McEwen presently has a consensus target price of $23.17, suggesting a potential downside of 13.54%. Lithium Americas has a consensus target price of $5.81, suggesting a potential downside of 9.53%. Given Lithium Americas’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Lithium Americas is more favorable than McEwen.
Profitability
This table compares McEwen and Lithium Americas’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| McEwen | -7.16% | -2.45% | -1.66% |
| Lithium Americas | N/A | -8.50% | -4.12% |
Summary
McEwen beats Lithium Americas on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About McEwen
McEwen Mining Inc. engages in the exploration, development, production, and sale of gold and silver. It also explores for copper deposits. The company owns 100% interests in the El Gallo and Fenix projects located in Mexico; and the Black Fox Mine and Stock Mill, Grey Fox, and Froome and Tamarack properties in Canada. It also owns interests in the Fuller, Davidson-Tisdale, Buffalo Ankerite, and Paymaster exploration properties located in Canada; and a 49% interest in the San José mine located in Argentina. In addition, the company owns 100% interests in the Gold Bar and Tonkin properties located in Eureka County, Nevada; and interests in the Los Azules copper project located in the cordilleran region in the province of San Juan, Argentina. The company was formerly known as US Gold Corporation and changed its name to McEwen Mining Inc. in January 2012. McEwen Mining Inc. was founded in 1979 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.
About Lithium Americas
Lithium Americas Corp. engages in the exploration and development of lithium properties in the United States and Canada. It holds a 100% interest in the Thacker Pass project located in northern Nevada, as well as investments in exploration properties in the United States and Canada. Lithium Americas Corp. was incorporated in 2023 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.
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