Contrasting Dakota Gold (NYSE:DC) & Westwater Resources (NASDAQ:WWR)

Westwater Resources (NASDAQ:WWR) and Dakota Gold (NYSE:DC) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and dividends.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

7.7% of Westwater Resources shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 37.4% of Dakota Gold shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of Westwater Resources shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 26.0% of Dakota Gold shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Westwater Resources and Dakota Gold”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Westwater Resources	N/A	N/A	-$7.75 million	($0.13)	-6.53
Dakota Gold	N/A	N/A	-$36.45 million	($0.41)	-6.12

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Westwater Resources and Dakota Gold, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Westwater Resources	0	0	0	0	0.00
Dakota Gold	0	0	1	0	3.00

Dakota Gold has a consensus target price of $6.00, indicating a potential upside of 139.04%. Given Dakota Gold’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Dakota Gold is more favorable than Westwater Resources.

Profitability

This table compares Westwater Resources and Dakota Gold’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Westwater Resources	N/A	-5.89%	-5.50%
Dakota Gold	N/A	-37.64%	-35.60%

Risk and Volatility

Westwater Resources has a beta of 1.56, suggesting that its stock price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Dakota Gold has a beta of 1.1, suggesting that its stock price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500.

About Westwater Resources

Westwater Resources, Inc. operates as an energy technology company, focuses on developing battery-grade natural graphite materials. The company holds interests in Kellyton Graphite Plant located in Kellyton, Alabama; and Bama Mine Project situated in south Alabama. It holds interests in Coosa graphite project located in Coosa County, Alabama. The company was formerly known as Uranium Resources, Inc. and changed its name to Westwater Resources, Inc. in August 2017. Westwater Resources, Inc. was incorporated in 1977 and is headquartered in Centennial, Colorado.

About Dakota Gold

Dakota Gold Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of mineral properties in the United States. It primarily explores for gold deposits. The company holds 100% interest in the Blind Gold, City Creek, Tinton, West Corridor, Ragged Top, Poorman Anticline, Maitland, South Lead/ Whistler Gulch, the Barrick Option, Richmond Hill and Homestake Paleoplacer Properties located in Homestake Mining District, South Dakota. Dakota Gold Corp. was incorporated in 2017 and is based in Lead, South Dakota.