Reviewing ARQ (NASDAQ:ARQ) and HighCom Global Security (OTCMKTS:HCGS)

HighCom Global Security (OTCMKTS:HCGS) and ARQ (NASDAQ:ARQ) are both small-cap industrial products companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, dividends and valuation.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

18.5% of ARQ shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.0% of HighCom Global Security shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 26.9% of ARQ shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares HighCom Global Security and ARQ”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
HighCom Global Security	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
ARQ	$110.02 million	2.55	-$12.25 million	($0.01)	-667.00

HighCom Global Security has higher earnings, but lower revenue than ARQ.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for HighCom Global Security and ARQ, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
HighCom Global Security	0	0	0	0	0.00
ARQ	0	0	2	0	3.00

ARQ has a consensus target price of $10.00, suggesting a potential upside of 49.93%. Given ARQ’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe ARQ is more favorable than HighCom Global Security.

Profitability

This table compares HighCom Global Security and ARQ’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
HighCom Global Security	N/A	N/A	N/A
ARQ	-0.44%	-0.25%	-0.19%

Summary

ARQ beats HighCom Global Security on 6 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About HighCom Global Security

HighCom Global Security, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, develops, manufactures, and distributes security products and personal protective gears in the United States and internationally. The company offers ballistic helmets, hard armor plates, soft armor vests, and ballistic shields. It also provides BlastWrap, a blast mitigation technology that contains explosions and suppresses resulting flash fires. The company was formerly known as BlastGard International, Inc. and changed its name to HighCom Global Security, Inc. in June 2017. HighCom Global Security, Inc. was incorporated in 2003 and is based in Columbus, Ohio.

About ARQ

Arq, Inc. produces activated carbon products in North America. The company's products include granular activated carbon, powdered and granular activated carbon, and colloidal carbon products; Arq Powder Wetcake, a fine and low-ash coal waste-derived particle; and additives for air emissions control. Its products are used in various applications, including water treatment, ground water remediation, soil sediments, air emissions, and asphalt additives. The company was formerly known as Advanced Emissions Solutions, Inc. and changed its name to Arq, Inc. in February 2024. Arq, Inc. was founded in 1997 and is headquartered in Greenwood Village, Colorado.