Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAAC) versus Wealth Minerals (OTCMKTS:WMLLF) Head-To-Head Contrast
by Teresa Graham · The Cerbat GemWealth Minerals (OTCMKTS:WMLLF – Get Free Report) and Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAAC – Get Free Report) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, profitability and valuation.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Wealth Minerals and Lithium Americas (Argentina), as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Wealth Minerals | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | N/A |
| Lithium Americas (Argentina) | 0 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 2.63 |
Lithium Americas (Argentina) has a consensus price target of $7.05, indicating a potential upside of 93.68%. Given Lithium Americas (Argentina)’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Lithium Americas (Argentina) is more favorable than Wealth Minerals.
Profitability
This table compares Wealth Minerals and Lithium Americas (Argentina)’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Wealth Minerals | N/A | -21.47% | -21.11% |
| Lithium Americas (Argentina) | N/A | -0.25% | -0.20% |
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Wealth Minerals and Lithium Americas (Argentina)”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Wealth Minerals | N/A | N/A | -$7.73 million | ($0.04) | -1.58 |
| Lithium Americas (Argentina) | N/A | N/A | $1.29 billion | $7.84 | 0.46 |
Wealth Minerals is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Lithium Americas (Argentina), indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
0.1% of Wealth Minerals shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 49.2% of Lithium Americas (Argentina) shares are owned by institutional investors. 19.8% of Lithium Americas (Argentina) shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Volatility & Risk
Wealth Minerals has a beta of 0.68, meaning that its share price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lithium Americas (Argentina) has a beta of 1.33, meaning that its share price is 33% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Lithium Americas (Argentina) beats Wealth Minerals on 11 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Wealth Minerals
Wealth Minerals Ltd., a junior mineral resource exploration company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in Canada, Chile, Peru, and Mexico. The company primarily explores for lithium, as well as for precious metal and copper deposits. Its flagship property is the 100% owned Atacama project that comprises 144 exploration concessions covering an area of approximately 46,200 hectares located in the Atacama Salar in Region II of Antofagasta, northern Chile. Wealth Minerals Ltd. was incorporated in 1994 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.
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.