Reviewing Ferroglobe (GSM) & Its Peers

Ferroglobe (NASDAQ:GSM) is one of 1,984 publicly-traded companies in the “Metals & Mining” industry, but how does it weigh in compared to its peers? We will compare Ferroglobe to related companies based on the strength of its analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings, risk and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Ferroglobe and its peers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ferroglobe	2.13%	-5.15%	-2.43%
Ferroglobe Competitors	-1,164,884,689,320,590,400.00%	-52.78%	-2.01%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

89.6% of Ferroglobe shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 16.1% of shares of all “Metals & Mining” companies are held by institutional investors. 13.1% of Ferroglobe shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 17.6% of shares of all “Metals & Mining” companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Ferroglobe and its peers, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ferroglobe	1	1	1	0	2.00
Ferroglobe Competitors	6406	22609	32306	1801	2.47

Ferroglobe currently has a consensus price target of $5.33, indicating a potential upside of 108.33%. As a group, “Metals & Mining” companies have a potential upside of 27.85%. Given Ferroglobe’s higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Ferroglobe is more favorable than its peers.

Dividends

Ferroglobe pays an annual dividend of $0.06 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Ferroglobe pays out 37.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “Metals & Mining” companies pay a dividend yield of 10.3% and pay out 10.8% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Ferroglobe has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Ferroglobe lags its peers as a dividend stock, given its lower dividend yield and higher payout ratio.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Ferroglobe and its peers gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ferroglobe	$1.34 billion	-$170.70 million	16.00
Ferroglobe Competitors	$4.77 billion	$278.94 million	-26.22

Ferroglobe’s peers have higher revenue and earnings than Ferroglobe. Ferroglobe is trading at a higher price-to-earnings ratio than its peers, indicating that it is currently more expensive than other companies in its industry.

Risk & Volatility

Ferroglobe has a beta of 1.21, meaning that its share price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ferroglobe’s peers have a beta of 0.96, meaning that their average share price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Ferroglobe peers beat Ferroglobe on 9 of the 15 factors compared.

About Ferroglobe

Ferroglobe PLC produces and sells silicon metal, and silicon and manganese-based ferroalloys in the United States, Europe, and internationally. It provides silicone chemicals that are used in a range of applications, including personal care items, construction-related products, health care products, and electronics; and silicon metal for primary and secondary aluminum producers. The company also offers silicomanganese, which is used as deoxidizing agent in the steel manufacturing process; and ferromanganese that is used as a deoxidizing, desulphurizing, and degassing agent in the removal of nitrogen and other harmful elements from steel. In addition, it offers ferrosilicon products that are used to produce stainless steel, carbon steel, and various other steel alloys, as well as to manufacture electrodes and aluminum; calcium silicon, which is used in the deoxidation and desulfurization of liquid steel, and production of coatings for cast iron pipes, as well as in the welding process of powder metal and in pyrotechnics; and nodularizers and inoculants, which are used in the production of iron. Further, the company provides silica fume, a by-product of the electrometallurgical process of silicon metal and ferrosilicon. Additionally, it operates quartz mines in South Africa, Spain, the United States, and Canada; and low-ash metallurgical coal mines in the United States; and a charcoal production facility in South Africa, as well as holds interests in hydroelectric power plant in France. The company serves silicone chemical producers; aluminum and steel manufacturers; auto companies and their suppliers; ductile iron foundries; manufacturers of photovoltaic solar cells and computer chips; and concrete producers. Ferroglobe PLC was formerly known as VeloNewco Limited and changed its name to Ferroglobe PLC in December 2015. The company was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.