Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) vs. Gulf Resources (NASDAQ:GURE) Head to Head Review

Air Products and Chemicals (NYSE:APD) and Gulf Resources (NASDAQ:GURE) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk and institutional ownership.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Air Products and Chemicals and Gulf Resources”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Air Products and Chemicals	$12.04 billion	4.58	-$394.50 million	($1.78)	-139.04
Gulf Resources	$7.66 million	0.64	-$58.94 million	($48.05)	-0.08

Gulf Resources has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Air Products and Chemicals. Air Products and Chemicals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Gulf Resources, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Air Products and Chemicals has a beta of 0.86, meaning that its stock price is 14% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gulf Resources has a beta of 0.38, meaning that its stock price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

81.7% of Air Products and Chemicals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.3% of Gulf Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 1.9% of Air Products and Chemicals shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 3.2% of Gulf Resources shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for Air Products and Chemicals and Gulf Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Air Products and Chemicals	2	6	7	1	2.44
Gulf Resources	1	0	0	0	1.00

Air Products and Chemicals presently has a consensus price target of $292.47, suggesting a potential upside of 18.17%. Given Air Products and Chemicals’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Air Products and Chemicals is more favorable than Gulf Resources.

Profitability

This table compares Air Products and Chemicals and Gulf Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Air Products and Chemicals	-3.28%	15.18%	6.64%
Gulf Resources	-286.77%	-20.62%	-17.50%

Summary

Air Products and Chemicals beats Gulf Resources on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Air Products and Chemicals

Air Products and Chemicals, Inc. provides atmospheric gases, process and specialty gases, equipment, and related services in the Americas, Asia, Europe, the Middle East, India, and internationally. The company produces atmospheric gases, including oxygen, nitrogen, and argon; process gases, such as hydrogen, helium, carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, and syngas; and specialty gases for customers in various industries, including refining, chemical, manufacturing, electronics, energy production, medical, food, and metals. It also designs and manufactures equipment for air separation, hydrocarbon recovery and purification, natural gas liquefaction, and liquid helium and liquid hydrogen transport and storage. The company was founded in 1940 and is headquartered in Allentown, Pennsylvania.

About Gulf Resources

Gulf Resources, Inc., through its subsidiaries, manufactures and trades bromine and crude salt, chemical products, and natural gas in the People’s Republic of China. The company operates through four segments: Bromine, Crude salt, Chemical products, and Natural gas segments. It also provides bromine for use in bromine compounds, intermediates in organic synthesis, brominated flame retardants, fumigants, water purification compounds, dyes, medicines, and disinfectants. In addition, the company offers crude salt for use as a material in alkali and chlorine alkali production for use in the chemical, food and beverage, and other industries. In addition, it manufactures and sells chemical products for use in oil and gas field exploration, oil and gas distribution, oil field drilling, papermaking chemical agents, and inorganic chemicals, as well as materials that are used for human and animal antibiotics. The company is based in Shouguang, the People’s Republic of China.