Head-To-Head Analysis: Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN) & Rayonier Advanced Materials (NYSE:RYAM)

Rayonier Advanced Materials (NYSE:RYAM) and Aspen Aerogels (NYSE:ASPN) are both small-cap materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Rayonier Advanced Materials and Aspen Aerogels’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rayonier Advanced Materials	-9.53%	-46.19%	-7.28%
Aspen Aerogels	-62.45%	-31.12%	-17.33%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Rayonier Advanced Materials and Aspen Aerogels, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rayonier Advanced Materials	1	1	1	0	2.00
Aspen Aerogels	2	1	4	0	2.29

Rayonier Advanced Materials presently has a consensus target price of $13.00, indicating a potential upside of 96.97%. Aspen Aerogels has a consensus target price of $5.94, indicating a potential upside of 17.34%. Given Rayonier Advanced Materials’ higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Rayonier Advanced Materials is more favorable than Aspen Aerogels.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Rayonier Advanced Materials and Aspen Aerogels”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rayonier Advanced Materials	$1.47 billion	0.30	-$420.67 million	($2.10)	-3.14
Aspen Aerogels	$202.09 million	2.08	-$389.55 million	($1.53)	-3.31

Aspen Aerogels has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Rayonier Advanced Materials. Aspen Aerogels is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Rayonier Advanced Materials, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

Rayonier Advanced Materials has a beta of 1.84, meaning that its share price is 84% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Aspen Aerogels has a beta of 3.06, meaning that its share price is 206% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

68.6% of Rayonier Advanced Materials shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.6% of Aspen Aerogels shares are held by institutional investors. 3.2% of Rayonier Advanced Materials shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 3.0% of Aspen Aerogels 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.

Summary

Aspen Aerogels beats Rayonier Advanced Materials on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rayonier Advanced Materials

Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc. manufactures and sells cellulose specialty products in the United States, China, Latin America, Canada, Japan, Europe, Latin America, other Asian countries, and internationally. It operates through High Purity Cellulose, Paperboard, and High-Yield Pulp segments. The company’s products include cellulose specialties, which are natural polymers that are used as raw materials to manufacture a range of consumer-oriented products, such as liquid crystal displays, impact-resistant plastics, thickeners for food products, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, cigarette filters, high-tenacity rayon yarn for tires and industrial hoses, food casings, paints, and lacquers. It also offers commodity products, such as commodity viscose pulp used in woven applications, including rayon textiles for clothing and other fabrics, as well as in non-woven applications comprising baby wipes, cosmetic and personal wipes, industrial wipes, and mattress ticking; and absorbent materials consisting of fluff fibers that are used as an absorbent medium in disposable baby diapers, feminine hygiene products, incontinence pads, convalescent bed pads, industrial towels and wipes, and non-woven fabrics. In addition, the company provides paperboards for packaging, printing documents, brochures, promotional materials, paperback books and catalog covers, file folders, tags, and lottery tickets; and high-yield pulps to produces hardwood aspen, maple, and birch species for paperboard, packaging, printing and writing papers, and various other paper products. The company was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida.

About Aspen Aerogels

Aspen Aerogels, Inc. designs, develops, manufactures, and sells aerogel insulation products primarily for use in the energy infrastructure and sustainable insulation materials markets in the United States, Asia, Canada, Europe, and Latin America. It operates in two segments, Energy Industrial and Thermal Barrier. The company offers PyroThin thermal barriers for use in lithium-ion batteries in electric vehicles and energy storage industries; Pyrogel XTE that reduces the risk of corrosion under insulation in energy infrastructure operating systems; and Pyrogel HPS for applications within the power generation market. It also offers Pyrogel XTF to provide protection against fire; Cryogel Z for sub-ambient and cryogenic applications in the energy infrastructure market; Spaceloft Subsea for use in pipe-in-pipe applications in offshore oil production; and Cryogel X201, which is used in designing cold systems, such as refrigerated appliances, cold storage equipment, and aerospace systems. The company was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Northborough, Massachusetts.