Augusta Gold (OTCMKTS:AUGG) & Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) Financial Contrast

Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) and Augusta Gold (OTCMKTS:AUGG) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and risk.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Southern Copper and Augusta Gold”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Southern Copper	$9.90 billion	9.24	$2.43 billion	$3.01	38.92
Augusta Gold	N/A	N/A	$6.66 million	($0.02)	-32.18

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Southern Copper and Augusta Gold, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Southern Copper	5	1	2	0	1.63
Augusta Gold	0	0	0	0	N/A

Southern Copper currently has a consensus target price of $89.57, suggesting a potential downside of 23.52%. Given Southern Copper’s higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Southern Copper is more favorable than Augusta Gold.

Profitability

This table compares Southern Copper and Augusta Gold’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Southern Copper	26.15%	34.98%	16.12%
Augusta Gold	N/A	-16.01%	-7.77%

Risk & Volatility

Southern Copper has a beta of 1.17, meaning that its stock price is 17% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Augusta Gold has a beta of 0.92, meaning that its stock price is 8% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

7.9% of Southern Copper shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 52.4% of Augusta Gold shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of Southern Copper shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 45.8% of Augusta Gold shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Southern Copper beats Augusta Gold on 10 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Southern Copper

Southern Copper Corporation engages in mining, exploring, smelting, and refining copper and other minerals in Peru, Mexico, Argentina, Ecuador, and Chile. The company is involved in the mining, milling, and flotation of copper ore to produce copper and molybdenum concentrates; smelting of copper concentrates to produce blister and anode copper; refining of anode copper to produce copper cathodes; production of molybdenum concentrate and sulfuric acid; production of refined silver, gold, and other materials; and mining and processing of zinc, copper, molybdenum, silver, gold, and lead. It operates the Toquepala and Cuajone open-pit mines, and a smelter and refinery in Peru; and La Caridad, an open-pit copper mine, as well as a copper ore concentrator, a SX-EW plant, a smelter, refinery, and a rod plant in Mexico. The company also operates Buenavista, an open-pit copper mine, as well as two copper concentrators and two operating SX-EW plants in Mexico. In addition, it operates underground mines that produce zinc, lead, copper, silver, and gold; a coal mine; and a zinc refinery. The company has interests in 156,818 hectares and 502,688 hectares of concessions in Peru and Mexico; and 168,200 hectares and 28,453 hectares of exploration concessions in Argentina and Chile. Southern Copper Corporation was incorporated in 1952 and is based in Phoenix, Arizona. Southern Copper Corporation is a subsidiary of Americas Mining Corporation.

About Augusta Gold

Augusta Gold Corp. engages in the acquisition and exploration of mineral properties in the United States. The company primarily explores for gold, silver, and other metals. It holds interests in the Bullfrog gold project consists of 734 unpatented lode mining claims and mill site claims, and 87 patented mining claims located in the Bullfrog Hills of Nye County, Nevada; and the Reward Gold Project comprises 123 unpatented Bureau of Land Management (BLM) placer and lode mining claims, and six patented placer mining claims covering approximately 2,333 acres located in Nye County, Nevada. The company was formerly known as Bullfrog Gold Corp. and changed its name to Augusta Gold Corp. in January 2021. Augusta Gold Corp. is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.