K+S Aktiengesellschaft (OTCMKTS:KPLUY) & American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD) Critical Review

K+S Aktiengesellschaft (OTCMKTS:KPLUY) and American Vanguard (NYSE:AVD) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares K+S Aktiengesellschaft and American Vanguard’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
K+S Aktiengesellschaft	N/A	N/A	N/A
American Vanguard	1.30%	2.05%	0.97%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.0% of K+S Aktiengesellschaft shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.0% of American Vanguard shares are held by institutional investors. 9.3% of American Vanguard shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares K+S Aktiengesellschaft and American Vanguard’s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
K+S Aktiengesellschaft	N/A	N/A	N/A	$0.97	7.69
American Vanguard	$579.37 million	0.58	$7.52 million	$0.27	43.56

American Vanguard has higher revenue and earnings than K+S Aktiengesellschaft. K+S Aktiengesellschaft is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than American Vanguard, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

K+S Aktiengesellschaft pays an annual dividend of $0.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. American Vanguard pays an annual dividend of $0.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. K+S Aktiengesellschaft pays out 8.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. American Vanguard pays out 44.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. K+S Aktiengesellschaft is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for K+S Aktiengesellschaft and American Vanguard, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
K+S Aktiengesellschaft	0	1	2	0	2.67
American Vanguard	0	0	3	0	3.00

American Vanguard has a consensus target price of $18.00, suggesting a potential upside of 53.06%. Given American Vanguard’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe American Vanguard is more favorable than K+S Aktiengesellschaft.

Summary

American Vanguard beats K+S Aktiengesellschaft on 10 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About K+S Aktiengesellschaft

K+S Aktiengesellschaft, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a supplier of mineral products for the agricultural, industrial, consumer, and community sectors worldwide. It offers potassium chloride for crops, such as grain, corn, rice, and soybean; fertilizer specialties that are used for crops with magnesium and sulfur requirements, including rapeseed and potatoes, as well as for chloride-sensitive crops consisting of citrus, grapes, and vegetables; and water-soluble fertilizers for use in fertigation of fruit and vegetables under the KALISOP, KORN-KALI, ROLL-KALI, PATENTKALI, ESTA KIESERIT, MAGNESIA-KAINIT, SOLUMOP, SOLUSOP, SOLUCMS, SOLUMAP, SOLUMKP, EPSO TOP, EPSO MICROTOP, EPSO COMBITOP, EPSO PROFITOP, and EPSO BORTOP brands. The company also provides melting salts, sodium chloride, natural rock salt, high-purity vaccum salt and natural sea salt, potassium chloride, Epsom salt, minerals for pets and livestock, aluminum recycling, salt licks for farm and wild animals under the Alasal, APISAL, AXAL PRO, NUTRIKS, NUTRIKS KaliSel, KASA, k-DRILL, Montanal, and SOLSEL brand names. In addition, it offers table salts under the SALDORO, Cérébos, and Vatel brands; salts for water treatment; dishwashing salts; and de-icing salts. K+S Aktiengesellschaft was founded in 1889 and is headquartered in Kassel, Germany.

About American Vanguard

American Vanguard Corporation, through its subsidiaries, develops, manufactures, and markets specialty chemicals for agricultural, commercial, and consumer uses in the United States and internationally. It manufactures and formulates chemicals, including insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, soil health, plant nutrition, molluscicides, growth regulators, soil fumigants, and biorationals in liquid, powder, and granular forms for crops, turf and ornamental plants, and human and animal health protection. The company also markets, sells, and distributes end-use chemical and biological products for crop applications; and distributes chemicals for turf and ornamental markets. It distributes its products through national distribution companies, and buying groups or co-operatives; and through sales offices, sales force executives, sales agents, and wholly owned distributors. American Vanguard Corporation was incorporated in 1969 and is headquartered in Newport Beach, California.