Critical Survey: Cadiz (NASDAQ:CDZI) versus Davis Commodities (NASDAQ:DTCK)

Cadiz (NASDAQ:CDZI) and Davis Commodities (NASDAQ:DTCK) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, risk and valuation.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

79.8% of Cadiz shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.8% of Davis Commodities shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.7% of Cadiz shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

Cadiz has a beta of 1.89, indicating that its stock price is 89% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Davis Commodities has a beta of -1.42, indicating that its stock price is 242% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Cadiz and Davis Commodities’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cadiz	-217.49%	-97.55%	-24.76%
Davis Commodities	N/A	N/A	N/A

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Cadiz and Davis Commodities, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cadiz	0	1	1	0	2.50
Davis Commodities	0	0	0	0	0.00

Cadiz currently has a consensus price target of $10.00, indicating a potential upside of 110.97%. Given Cadiz’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Cadiz is more favorable than Davis Commodities.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Cadiz and Davis Commodities”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cadiz	$9.61 million	40.46	-$31.14 million	($0.51)	-9.29
Davis Commodities	$132.37 million	0.15	-$3.53 million	N/A	N/A

Davis Commodities has higher revenue and earnings than Cadiz.

About Cadiz

Cadiz Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides water solutions in the United States. The company operates through Land and Water Resources; and Water Filtration Technology segments. It offers water supply, water storage, water conveyance, and water filtration services. In addition, the company is involved in the cultivation of grain crops and alfalfa, as well as provides water filtration solutions for impaired or contaminated groundwater sources. It serves public water systems, government agencies, and other clients. Cadiz Inc. was founded in 1983 and is based in Los Angeles, California.

About Davis Commodities

Davis Commodities Limited, an investment holding company, operates as an agricultural commodity trading company in Asia, Africa, and the Middle East. The company trades in agricultural commodities, including sugar, rice, and oil and fat products under the Maxwill and Taffy brands. It also provides warehouse storage and logistic, as well as agency services. Davis Commodities Limited was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in Singapore. The company operates as a subsidiary of Davis & KT Holdings Pte. Ltd.