Reviewing i-80 Gold (NYSE:IAUX) and Paradigm Oil and Gas (OTCMKTS:PDGO)

i-80 Gold (NYSE:IAUX) and Paradigm Oil and Gas (OTCMKTS:PDGO) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability and valuation.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for i-80 Gold and Paradigm Oil and Gas, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
i-80 Gold	0	3	0	1	2.50
Paradigm Oil and Gas	0	0	0	0	0.00

i-80 Gold presently has a consensus price target of $3.50, indicating a potential upside of 517.94%. Given i-80 Gold’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe i-80 Gold is more favorable than Paradigm Oil and Gas.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares i-80 Gold and Paradigm Oil and Gas”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
i-80 Gold	$54.91 million	4.18	-$65.20 million	($0.36)	-1.57
Paradigm Oil and Gas	N/A	N/A	-$1.66 million	N/A	N/A

Paradigm Oil and Gas has lower revenue, but higher earnings than i-80 Gold.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

61.3% of i-80 Gold shares are owned by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

i-80 Gold has a beta of 1.25, indicating that its share price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Paradigm Oil and Gas has a beta of -0.13, indicating that its share price is 113% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares i-80 Gold and Paradigm Oil and Gas’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
i-80 Gold	-231.43%	-21.18%	-12.67%
Paradigm Oil and Gas	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

i-80 Gold beats Paradigm Oil and Gas on 6 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About i-80 Gold

i-80 Gold Corp. is a mining company, engages in the exploration, development and production of gold and silver mineral deposits principally in the United States. i-80 Gold Corp. is based in Reno, Nevada.

About Paradigm Oil and Gas

Paradigm Oil and Gas, Inc., an exploration stage company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and operation of oil and gas properties. It holds interests in 4 oil and gas leases covering approximately 934 net mineral acres located in the Wichita and Navarro counties of Texas. The company is headquartered in Indian Rocks Beach, Florida.