Contrasting Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAAC) & Alderon Iron Ore (OTCMKTS:AXXDF)

Lithium Americas (Argentina) (NYSE:LAAC) and Alderon Iron Ore (OTCMKTS:AXXDF) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, earnings, dividends and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Lithium Americas (Argentina) and Alderon Iron Ore’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lithium Americas (Argentina)	N/A	-1.37%	-1.08%
Alderon Iron Ore	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider & Institutional Ownership

49.2% of Lithium Americas (Argentina) shares are owned by institutional investors. 19.8% of Lithium Americas (Argentina) shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.1% of Alderon Iron Ore shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Lithium Americas (Argentina) and Alderon Iron Ore, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lithium Americas (Argentina)	0	3	3	1	2.71
Alderon Iron Ore	0	0	0	0	0.00

Lithium Americas (Argentina) currently has a consensus target price of $7.19, indicating a potential upside of 159.95%. Given Lithium Americas (Argentina)’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Lithium Americas (Argentina) is more favorable than Alderon Iron Ore.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Lithium Americas (Argentina) and Alderon Iron Ore”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lithium Americas (Argentina)	N/A	N/A	$1.29 billion	$7.79	0.35
Alderon Iron Ore	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

Lithium Americas (Argentina) beats Alderon Iron Ore on 6 of the 8 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About Alderon Iron Ore

Alderon Iron Ore Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties. Its principal asset is the Kami iron ore project that comprises 283 claim units covering an area of 7,075 hectares located in Western Labrador, Canada. The company was formerly known as Alderon Resource Corp. and changed its name to Alderon Iron Ore Corp. in September 2011. Alderon Iron Ore Corp. was incorporated in 1978 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.