Analyzing i-80 Gold (NYSE:IAUX) & Platinum Group Metals (NYSE:PLG)

i-80 Gold (NYSE:IAUX) and Platinum Group Metals (NYSE:PLG) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for i-80 Gold and Platinum Group Metals, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
i-80 Gold	0	2	3	1	2.83
Platinum Group Metals	0	0	0	0	0.00

i-80 Gold presently has a consensus price target of $1.50, suggesting a potential upside of 76.87%. Given i-80 Gold’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe i-80 Gold is more favorable than Platinum Group Metals.

Volatility & Risk

i-80 Gold has a beta of 1.2, meaning that its stock price is 20% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Platinum Group Metals has a beta of 1.58, meaning that its stock price is 58% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

61.3% of i-80 Gold shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 16.3% of Platinum Group Metals shares are held by institutional investors. 2.1% of i-80 Gold shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Platinum Group Metals shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares i-80 Gold and Platinum Group Metals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
i-80 Gold	-231.43%	-21.18%	-12.67%
Platinum Group Metals	N/A	-10.13%	-9.69%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares i-80 Gold and Platinum Group Metals”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
i-80 Gold	$76.62 million	9.03	-$65.20 million	($0.29)	-2.92
Platinum Group Metals	N/A	N/A	-$4.61 million	($0.04)	-40.25

Platinum Group Metals has lower revenue, but higher earnings than i-80 Gold. Platinum Group Metals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than i-80 Gold, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

i-80 Gold beats Platinum Group Metals on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About i-80 Gold

i-80 Gold Corp. is a mining company, engages in the exploration, development and production of gold and silver mineral deposits principally in the United States. i-80 Gold Corp. is based in Reno, Nevada.

About Platinum Group Metals

Platinum Group Metals Ltd. engages in the exploration and development of platinum and palladium properties. It explores for palladium, platinum, gold, copper, nickel, and rhodium deposits. The company holds 50.02% interest in the Waterberg project located on the Northern Limb of the Bushveld Igneous Complex, South Africa. It also develops next-generation battery technology using platinum and palladium. Platinum Group Metals Ltd. was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.