Comparing Braskem (NYSE:BAK) & Ingevity (NYSE:NGVT)

Ingevity (NYSE:NGVT) and Braskem (NYSE:BAK) are both materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and dividends.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Ingevity and Braskem, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ingevity	0	3	2	0	2.40
Braskem	6	3	0	0	1.33

Ingevity presently has a consensus price target of $80.00, suggesting a potential upside of 14.46%. Braskem has a consensus price target of $2.56, suggesting a potential upside of 41.05%. Given Braskem’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Braskem is more favorable than Ingevity.

Volatility and Risk

Ingevity has a beta of 1.14, suggesting that its share price is 14% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Braskem has a beta of 1.56, suggesting that its share price is 56% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

91.6% of Ingevity shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Ingevity shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Braskem shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Ingevity and Braskem’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ingevity	4.65%	284.70%	10.82%
Braskem	-7.28%	-67.75%	9.94%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Ingevity and Braskem”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ingevity	$1.17 billion	2.06	-$167.10 million	$1.47	47.55
Braskem	$12.66 billion	0.06	-$1.77 billion	($2.43)	-0.75

Ingevity has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Braskem. Braskem is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ingevity, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Ingevity beats Braskem on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ingevity

Ingevity Corporation manufactures and sells activated carbon products, derivative specialty chemicals, and engineered polymers in North America, the Asia Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and South America. It operates through three segments: Performance Materials, Performance Chemicals, and Advanced Polymer Technologies. The Performance Materials segment engineers, manufactures, and sells hardwood-based and chemically activated carbon products for use in gasoline vapor emission control systems in cars, motorcycles, trucks, and boats. This segment also produces other activated carbon products for food, water, beverage, and chemical purification applications. The Performance Chemicals segment consists of road technologies and industrial specialties. This segment's products are used in pavement construction, pavement preservation, pavement reconstruction and recycling, road markings, agrochemical dispersants, paper chemicals, and other industrial uses. The Advanced Polymer Technologies segment produces caprolactone and caprolactone-based specialty polymers for use in coatings, resins, elastomers, adhesives, bioplastics, and medical devices. It serves automotive parts and components manufacturers through sales representatives and distributors. The company was formerly known as WestRock Company, Specialty Chemicals Business and changed its name to Ingevity Corporation in September 2015. Ingevity Corporation was founded in 1964 and is headquartered in North Charleston, South Carolina.

About Braskem

Braskem S.A., together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells thermoplastic resins. The company operates through three segments: Brazil, United States and Europe, and Mexico. The Brazil segment produces and sells olefins, including ethylene, polymer and chemical grade propylene, butadiene, and butene-1; benzene, toluene, and xylenes products; fuels, such as automotive gasoline, liquefied petroleum gas, ethyl tertiary-butyl ether, and methyl tertiary-butyl ether; intermediates, such as cumene; aliphatics, aromatics, and hydrogenated solvents; and specialties comprising isoprene, dicyclopentadiene, piperylene, nonene, tetramer, polyisobutylene, and hydrocarbon resins. This segment also produces and sells polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP); supplies electricity and other inputs to second-generation producers; produces and sells of PE, including the production of green PE from renewable resources; and produces and sells polyvinyl chloride and caustic soda. The United States and Europe segment produces and sells PP in the United States and Germany. The Mexico segment produces and sells ethylene, high-density PE, and low-density PE in Mexico. It also manufactures, sells, imports, and exports chemicals, petrochemicals, and fules; produces, supplies, and sells utilities, such as steam, water, compressed air, and industrial gases; and provides industrial services. The company was formerly known as Copene Petroquímica do Nordeste S.A. and changed its name to Braskem S.A. in 2002. Braskem S.A. was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil.