Financial Analysis: i-80 Gold (NYSE:IAUX) and Gold Resource (NYSE:GORO)

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

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares i-80 Gold and Gold Resource”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
i-80 Gold	$52.94 million	5.17	-$65.20 million	($0.29)	-2.13
Gold Resource	$65.73 million	0.63	-$16.02 million	($0.61)	-0.71

Gold Resource has higher revenue and earnings than i-80 Gold. i-80 Gold is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Gold Resource, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings for i-80 Gold and Gold Resource, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
i-80 Gold	0	2	1	1	2.75
Gold Resource	0	0	1	0	3.00

i-80 Gold currently has a consensus target price of $3.50, indicating a potential upside of 467.08%. Gold Resource has a consensus target price of $1.25, indicating a potential upside of 188.68%. Given i-80 Gold’s higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe i-80 Gold is more favorable than Gold Resource.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

61.3% of i-80 Gold shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 18.4% of Gold Resource shares are held by institutional investors. 2.5% of Gold Resource shares are held by company 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.

Volatility and Risk

i-80 Gold has a beta of 1.26, meaning that its share price is 26% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Gold Resource has a beta of 1.18, meaning that its share price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares i-80 Gold and Gold Resource’s 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%
Gold Resource	-61.31%	-35.25%	-16.15%

Summary

i-80 Gold beats Gold Resource on 8 of the 14 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 Gold Resource

Gold Resource Corporation engages in the exploration, development, and production of gold and silver projects in Mexico and the United States. The company also explores for copper, lead, and zinc deposits. Its principal assets are the 100% owned Don David gold mine and Back Forty project covering approximately 1,304 hectares located in Menominee county, Michigan. The company was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.