Head to Head Contrast: Impala Platinum (OTCMKTS:IMPUY) vs. Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAAC)

Impala Platinum (OTCMKTS:IMPUY) and Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAAC) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

49.2% of Lithium Americas (Argentina) shares are held by institutional investors. 19.8% of Lithium Americas (Argentina) shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Impala Platinum and Lithium Americas (Argentina)’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Impala Platinum	N/A	N/A	N/A
Lithium Americas (Argentina)	N/A	3.09%	2.51%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Impala Platinum and Lithium Americas (Argentina)’s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Impala Platinum	$6.01 billion	0.75	$276.64 million	N/A	N/A
Lithium Americas (Argentina)	N/A	N/A	$1.29 billion	$7.99	0.40

Lithium Americas (Argentina) has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Impala Platinum.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Impala Platinum and Lithium Americas (Argentina), as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Impala Platinum	1	0	0	0	1.00
Lithium Americas (Argentina)	0	4	3	0	2.43

Lithium Americas (Argentina) has a consensus price target of $8.83, suggesting a potential upside of 176.04%. Given Lithium Americas (Argentina)’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Lithium Americas (Argentina) is more favorable than Impala Platinum.

Risk & Volatility

Impala Platinum has a beta of 1.7, meaning that its stock price is 70% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lithium Americas (Argentina) has a beta of 1.37, meaning that its stock price is 37% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Lithium Americas (Argentina) beats Impala Platinum on 8 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Impala Platinum

Impala Platinum Holdings Limited engages in the mining, processing, concentrating, refining, and sale of platinum group metals (PGMs) and associated base metals. The company produces platinum, palladium, rhodium, nickel, and by-products, as well as ruthenium, iridium, and gold. It has operations on the PGM-bearing orebodies, including the Bushveld Complex located in South Africa; and the Great Dyke situated in Zimbabwe, as well as the Canadian Shield. The company markets and sells its products in South Africa, Japan, China, the United States, and Europe. Impala Platinum Holdings Limited was incorporated in 1957 and is based in Sandton, South Africa.

About Lithium Americas (Argentina)

Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp. operates as a resource company. The company explores for lithium deposits. The company owns interests in the Cauchari-Olaroz project located in Jujuy province of Argentina. It also has a pipeline of development and exploration stage projects, including the Pastos Grandes project and the Sal de la Puna project located in Salta Province in northwestern Argentina. Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp. is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.