Head-To-Head Analysis: Northern Technologies International (NASDAQ:NTIC) versus Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP)

Northern Technologies International (NASDAQ:NTIC) and Compass Minerals International (NYSE:CMP) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, risk, profitability and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Northern Technologies International and Compass Minerals International’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Northern Technologies International	3.46%	3.38%	2.66%
Compass Minerals International	-9.87%	-16.70%	-2.77%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Northern Technologies International and Compass Minerals International, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Northern Technologies International	0	0	0	0	0.00
Compass Minerals International	1	2	1	0	2.00

Compass Minerals International has a consensus target price of $20.00, indicating a potential upside of 2.94%. Given Compass Minerals International’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Compass Minerals International is more favorable than Northern Technologies International.

Volatility & Risk

Northern Technologies International has a beta of 0.31, indicating that its stock price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Compass Minerals International has a beta of 1.11, indicating that its stock price is 11% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

32.9% of Northern Technologies International shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 99.8% of Compass Minerals International shares are owned by institutional investors. 24.3% of Northern Technologies International shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Compass Minerals International shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Northern Technologies International and Compass Minerals International”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Northern Technologies International	$85.27 million	0.85	$5.41 million	$0.30	25.53
Compass Minerals International	$1.12 billion	0.72	-$206.10 million	($2.92)	-6.65

Northern Technologies International has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Compass Minerals International. Compass Minerals International is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Northern Technologies International, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Northern Technologies International beats Compass Minerals International on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Northern Technologies International

Northern Technologies International Corporation develops and markets rust and corrosion inhibiting solutions in North America, South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and internationally. It offers rust and corrosion inhibiting products, such as plastic and paper packaging, liquids, coatings, rust removers, cleaners, diffusers, and engineered solutions designed for the oil and gas industry under the ZERUST brand. The company provides a portfolio of bio-based and certified compostable polymer resin compounds and finished products under the Natur-Tec brand. In addition, it offers on-site and technical consulting for rust and corrosion prevention issues. It sells its products and services to automotive, electronics, electrical, mechanical, military, retail consumer, and oil and gas markets through direct sales force, network of independent distributors, agents, manufacturer's sales representatives, and strategic partners. The company was founded in 1970 and is headquartered in Circle Pines, Minnesota.

About Compass Minerals International

Compass Minerals International, Inc., provides essential minerals in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and internationally. It operates through two segments, Salt and Plant Nutrition. The Salt segment produces, markets, and sells sodium chloride and magnesium chloride, including rock salt, mechanically and solar evaporated salt, and brine and flake magnesium chloride products; and purchases potassium chloride and calcium chloride to sell as finished products or to blend with sodium chloride to produce specialty products. This segment provides products for use as a deicer for roadways, consumer, and professional use; as an ingredient in chemical production; for water treatment, human, and animal nutrition; and for various other consumer and industrial uses, as well as records management services. The Plant Nutrition segment produces sulfate of potash specialty fertilizers in various grades that are used in broadcast spreaders, direct application, and liquid fertilizer solutions under the Protassium+ brand name; turf products used by the turf and ornamental markets, as well as for blends used on golf course greens; organic products; and develops and produces a portfolio of magnesium chloride-based aerial and ground fire retardant products. This segment provides its products to distributors and retailers of crop inputs, as well as growers. The company was formerly known as Salt Holdings Corporation and changed its name to Compass Minerals International, Inc. in December 2003. Compass Minerals International, Inc. was founded in 1844 and is headquartered in Overland Park, Kansas.