Standard Lithium (NYSE:SLI) & Liquidmetal Technologies (OTCMKTS:LQMT) Critical Survey

Standard Lithium (NYSE:SLI) and Liquidmetal Technologies (OTCMKTS:LQMT) are both small-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and dividends.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

16.8% of Standard Lithium shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.1% of Liquidmetal Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. 3.7% of Standard Lithium shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 45.4% of Liquidmetal Technologies shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

Standard Lithium has a beta of 1.89, indicating that its share price is 89% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Liquidmetal Technologies has a beta of 1.2, indicating that its share price is 20% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Standard Lithium and Liquidmetal Technologies”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Standard Lithium	N/A	N/A	$108.82 million	$0.58	4.04
Liquidmetal Technologies	$510,000.00	81.48	-$2.05 million	N/A	N/A

Standard Lithium has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Liquidmetal Technologies.

Profitability

This table compares Standard Lithium and Liquidmetal Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Standard Lithium	N/A	-15.67%	-14.05%
Liquidmetal Technologies	-159.90%	-4.35%	-4.18%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Standard Lithium and Liquidmetal Technologies, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Standard Lithium	0	0	1	0	3.00
Liquidmetal Technologies	0	0	0	0	N/A

Standard Lithium presently has a consensus target price of $3.50, indicating a potential upside of 49.25%. Given Standard Lithium’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Standard Lithium is more favorable than Liquidmetal Technologies.

Summary

Standard Lithium beats Liquidmetal Technologies on 6 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Standard Lithium

Standard Lithium Ltd. explores for, develops, and processes lithium brine properties in the United States. Its flagship project is the Lanxess project with area of approximately 150,000 acres located in southern Arkansas. The company was formerly known as Patriot Petroleum Corp. and changed its name to Standard Lithium Ltd. in December 2016. Standard Lithium Ltd. was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About Liquidmetal Technologies

Liquidmetal Technologies, Inc., a materials technology company, designs, develops, and sells custom products and parts from bulk amorphous alloys to various industries in the United States and internationally. The company provides bulk amorphous alloy custom products and parts for applications, which include non-consumer electronic devices, medical products, automotive components, and sports and leisure goods. It offers tooling and prototype parts, such as demonstration parts and test samples for customers with products in development; and engages in product licensing activities. In addition, the company partners with third-party manufacturers and licensees to develop and commercialize liquid metal alloy products. The company was incorporated in 1987 and is based in Lake Forest, California.