Head to Head Review: Ecovyst (NYSE:ECVT) and NewMarket (NYSE:NEU)

Ecovyst (NYSE:ECVT) and NewMarket (NYSE:NEU) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Ecovyst and NewMarket”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ecovyst	$723.50 million	1.98	-$71.13 million	($0.62)	-20.94
NewMarket	$2.73 billion	2.21	$418.75 million	$44.42	14.44

NewMarket has higher revenue and earnings than Ecovyst. Ecovyst is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than NewMarket, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Ecovyst and NewMarket, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ecovyst	1	1	4	0	2.50
NewMarket	0	1	0	0	2.00

Ecovyst presently has a consensus target price of $13.60, indicating a potential upside of 4.74%. Given Ecovyst’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Ecovyst is more favorable than NewMarket.

Volatility & Risk

Ecovyst has a beta of 1.04, meaning that its share price is 4% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, NewMarket has a beta of 0.48, meaning that its share price is 52% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Ecovyst and NewMarket’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ecovyst	-9.27%	9.39%	3.71%
NewMarket	15.37%	25.38%	12.73%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

86.7% of Ecovyst shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 61.1% of NewMarket shares are held by institutional investors. 1.5% of Ecovyst shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 8.6% of NewMarket shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

NewMarket beats Ecovyst on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ecovyst

Ecovyst Inc. offers specialty catalysts and services in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Ecoservices and Advanced Materials & Catalysts. The Ecoservices segment provides sulfuric acid recycling services and end-to-end logistics for production of alkylate for refineries; and virgin sulfuric acid for mining, water treatment, and industrial applications. The Advanced Materials & Catalysts segment offers advanced materials and specialty catalyst products and process solutions to producers and licensors of polyethylene and advanced silicas. This segment also supplies specialty zeolites and zeolite-based catalysts to customers for refining of oil primarily hydrocracking catalyst and dewaxing, sustainable fuels, and emission control systems for both on-road and non-road diesel engines. The company was formerly known as PQ Group Holdings Inc. and changed its name to Ecovyst Inc. in August 2021. Ecovyst Inc. was founded in 1831 and is headquartered in Malvern, Pennsylvania.

About NewMarket

NewMarket Corporation, through its subsidiaries, primarily engages in the manufacture and sale of petroleum additives. The company offers lubricant additives for use in various vehicle and industrial applications, including engine oils, transmission fluids, off-road powertrain and hydraulic systems, gear oils, hydraulic oils, turbine oils, and other applications where metal-to-metal moving parts are utilized; engine oil additives designed for passenger cars, motorcycles, on and off-road heavy duty commercial equipment, locomotives, and engines in ocean-going vessels; driveline additives designed for products, such as transmission fluids, axle fluids, and off-road powertrain fluids; and industrial additives designed for products for industrial applications consisting of hydraulic fluids, grease, industrial gear fluids, and industrial specialty applications, such as turbine oils. It also provides fuel additives that are used to enhance the oil refining process and the performance of gasoline, diesel, biofuels, and other fuels to industry, government, original equipment manufacturers, and individual customers. In addition, the company engages in the marketing of antiknock compounds, as well as contracted manufacturing and services activities; and owns and manages a real property in Virginia. It operates in North America, Latin America, Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and India. NewMarket Corporation was founded in 1887 and is headquartered in Richmond, Virginia.