Standard Lithium (OTCMKTS:SLI) and Iluka Resources (OTCMKTS:ILKAF) Head-To-Head Review

Iluka Resources (OTCMKTS:ILKAF) and Standard Lithium (OTCMKTS:SLI) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, risk, valuation and institutional ownership.

Dividends

Iluka Resources pays an annual dividend of $0.09 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Standard Lithium pays an annual dividend of $2.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 115.6%. Iluka Resources pays out -917.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Standard Lithium pays out 339.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

39.7% of Iluka Resources shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 16.8% of Standard Lithium shares are held by institutional investors. 3.7% of Standard Lithium shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Iluka Resources and Standard Lithium’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Iluka Resources	N/A	N/A	N/A
Standard Lithium	N/A	-12.51%	-12.09%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Iluka Resources and Standard Lithium”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Iluka Resources	N/A	N/A	N/A	($0.01)	-358.74
Standard Lithium	N/A	N/A	-$30.10 million	$0.59	2.93

Iluka Resources is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Standard Lithium, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Iluka Resources and Standard Lithium, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Iluka Resources	0	0	0	0	0.00
Standard Lithium	0	0	2	0	3.00

Standard Lithium has a consensus price target of $3.50, indicating a potential upside of 102.31%. Given Standard Lithium’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Standard Lithium is more favorable than Iluka Resources.

Summary

Standard Lithium beats Iluka Resources on 7 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Iluka Resources

Iluka Resources Limited engages in the exploration, project development, mining, processing, marketing, and rehabilitation of mineral sands in Australia, China, rest of Asia, Europe, the Americas, and internationally. It operates through Jacinth-Ambrosia/Mid-West, Cataby/South West, Rare Earths, and United States/Murray Basin segments. The company produces zircon; titanium dioxide products of rutile and synthetic rutile; and ilmenite, as well as activated carbon, gypsum, and iron concentrate products. It also engages in the exploration of rare earths elements, such as monazite and xenotime. Its products are used in technology, construction, medical, lifestyle, defense, and industrial applications. The company was formerly known as Westralian Sands Limited and changed its name to Iluka Resources Limited in May 1999. Iluka Resources Limited was incorporated in 1954 and is headquartered in Perth, Australia.

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.