Aqua Metals (NASDAQ:AQMS – Get Free Report) and Aris Water Solutions (NYSE:ARIS – Get Free Report) are both small-cap business services companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends and profitability.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Aqua Metals and Aris Water Solutions”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Aqua Metals | $30,000.00 | 718.29 | -$24.55 million | ($35.94) | -0.41 |
| Aris Water Solutions | $475.50 million | 2.94 | $26.86 million | $0.83 | 28.43 |
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Aqua Metals and Aris Water Solutions, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Aqua Metals | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Aris Water Solutions | 0 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 2.20 |
Aqua Metals currently has a consensus price target of $30.00, indicating a potential upside of 106.04%. Aris Water Solutions has a consensus price target of $26.50, indicating a potential upside of 12.29%. Given Aqua Metals’ higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Aqua Metals is more favorable than Aris Water Solutions.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
22.0% of Aqua Metals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 39.7% of Aris Water Solutions shares are held by institutional investors. 8.3% of Aqua Metals shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 37.8% of Aris Water Solutions shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Profitability
This table compares Aqua Metals and Aris Water Solutions’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Aqua Metals | N/A | -214.23% | -135.05% |
| Aris Water Solutions | 6.00% | 3.77% | 1.99% |
Volatility & Risk
Aqua Metals has a beta of 0.4, indicating that its share price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Aris Water Solutions has a beta of 1.67, indicating that its share price is 67% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Aris Water Solutions beats Aqua Metals on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Aqua Metals
Aqua Metals, Inc. engages in reinventing metals recycling activities with its patented AquaRefining technology. The company's technology produces metals and alloys that can be returned into the battery manufacturing supply chain markets, as well as sells metals for use in various advanced manufacturing industries. Its AquaRefining, a low-emissions and recycling technology that replaces polluting furnaces and hazardous chemicals with electricity-powered electroplating to recover valuable metals and materials from spent batteries. Aqua Metals, Inc. was incorporated in 2014 and is headquartered in Reno, Nevada.
About Aris Water Solutions
Aris Water Solutions, Inc., an environmental infrastructure and solutions company, provides water handling and recycling solutions. The company's produced water handling business gathers, transports, unless recycled, and handles produced water generated from oil and natural gas production. Its water solutions business develops and operates recycling facilities to treat, store, and recycle produced water. Aris Water Solutions, Inc. was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.
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