NOVONIX (NASDAQ:NVX) and Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN) Critical Review

Sunrun (NASDAQ:RUN) and NOVONIX (NASDAQ:NVX) are both small-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Sunrun and NOVONIX”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Sunrun	$2.04 billion	0.94	-$1.60 billion	($1.82)	-4.66
NOVONIX	$8.06 million	26.02	-$46.25 million	N/A	N/A

NOVONIX has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Sunrun.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Sunrun and NOVONIX, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sunrun	1	7	14	0	2.59
NOVONIX	0	0	1	0	3.00

Sunrun presently has a consensus price target of $18.36, indicating a potential upside of 116.30%. NOVONIX has a consensus price target of $4.00, indicating a potential upside of 203.03%. Given NOVONIX’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe NOVONIX is more favorable than Sunrun.

Profitability

This table compares Sunrun and NOVONIX’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sunrun	-18.80%	-5.15%	-1.53%
NOVONIX	N/A	N/A	N/A

Institutional and Insider Ownership

91.7% of Sunrun shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.1% of NOVONIX shares are held by institutional investors. 3.8% of Sunrun shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 23.7% of NOVONIX shares are held by 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.

Volatility & Risk

Sunrun has a beta of 2.59, meaning that its stock price is 159% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, NOVONIX has a beta of 2.9, meaning that its stock price is 190% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

NOVONIX beats Sunrun on 9 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Sunrun

Sunrun Inc. designs, develops, installs, sells, owns, and maintains residential solar energy systems in the United States. It also sells solar energy systems and products, such as panels and racking; and solar leads generated to customers. In addition, the company offers battery storage along with solar energy systems; and sells services to commercial developers through multi-family and new homes. Its primary customers are residential homeowners. The company markets and sells its products through direct-to-consumer approach across online, retail, mass media, digital media, canvassing, field marketing, and referral channels, as well as its partner network. Sunrun Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.

About NOVONIX

NOVONIX Limited provides battery materials and development technology for battery manufacturers, materials companies, automotive original equipment manufacturers (OEMs), and consumer electronics manufacturers in North America, Asia, Australia, and Europe. It operates through Battery Materials and Battery Technology segments. The Battery Materials segment develops and manufactures battery anode materials. The Battery Technology segment develops battery cell testing equipment, performs consulting services, and carries out research and development in battery development. The company is involved in the investment and real estate borrowing activities; and offers battery technology, battery testing hardware equipment, and battery testing and development consulting services. The company was formerly known as Graphitecorp Limited and changed its name to NOVONIX Limited in July 2017. NOVONIX Limited was incorporated in 2012 and is based in Brisbane, Australia.