Financial Survey: ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) & Orion (NYSE:OEC)

Orion (NYSE:OEC) and ICL Group (NYSE:ICL) are both materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Orion and ICL Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Orion	-5.28%	-0.31%	-0.06%
ICL Group	3.95%	8.40%	4.19%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Orion and ICL Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Orion	$1.81 billion	0.18	-$70.10 million	($1.73)	-3.32
ICL Group	$7.15 billion	0.81	$226.00 million	$0.24	18.73

ICL Group has higher revenue and earnings than Orion. Orion is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than ICL Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Orion pays an annual dividend of $0.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. ICL Group pays an annual dividend of $0.17 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. Orion pays out -4.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. ICL Group pays out 70.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Volatility and Risk

Orion has a beta of 1.05, meaning that its share price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ICL Group has a beta of 0.97, meaning that its share price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

94.3% of Orion shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 13.4% of ICL Group shares are held by institutional investors. 3.1% of Orion shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Orion and ICL Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Orion	3	2	0	0	1.40
ICL Group	0	2	0	0	2.00

Orion presently has a consensus price target of $5.58, indicating a potential downside of 2.76%. ICL Group has a consensus price target of $6.00, indicating a potential upside of 33.48%. Given ICL Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe ICL Group is more favorable than Orion.

Summary

ICL Group beats Orion on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Orion

Orion S.A., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the manufacture and sale of carbon black products. It operates in two segments, Specialty Carbon Black and Rubber Carbon Black. The company offers post-treated specialty carbon black grades for coatings and printing applications; high purity carbon black grades for the fiber industry; and conductive carbon black grades for batteries, polymers, and coatings. It also provides rubber carbon black products for applications in mechanical rubber goods, as well as in tires under the ECORAX brand name; and acetylene-based conductive additives for lithium-ion batteries and other applications. It operates in the United States, Brazil, rest of the Americas, Germany, South Africa, Italy, Spain, Turkey, France, Rest of EMEA, China, the Republic of Korea, and rest of Asia. The company was formerly known as Orion Engineered Carbons S.A. and changed its name to Orion S.A. in June 2023. Orion S.A. was founded in 1862 and is headquartered in Senningerberg, Luxembourg.

About ICL Group

ICL Group Ltd, together with its subsidiaries, operates as a specialty minerals and chemicals company worldwide. It operates in four segments: Industrial Products, Potash, Phosphate Solutions, and Growing Solutions. The Industrial Products segment produces bromine out of a solution that is a by-product of the potash production process, as well as bromine-based compounds; produces various grades of potash, salt, magnesium chloride, and magnesia products; and produces and markets phosphorous-based flame retardants and other phosphorus-based products. The Potash segment extracts potash from the Dead Sea; mines and produces potash and salt; produces polysulphate; produces, markets, and sells magnesium and magnesium alloys, as well as related by-products, including chlorine and sylvinite; and sells salt. The Phosphate Solutions segment uses phosphate commodity products to produce specialty products; produces and markets phosphate-based fertilizers, as well as sulphuric acid, green phosphoric acid, and phosphate fertilizers; and manufactures thermal phosphoric acid for various industrial end markets, such as oral care, cleaning products, paints and coatings, water treatment, asphalt modification, construction, and metal treatment. It also develops and produces functional food ingredients and phosphate additives for use in the processed meat, poultry, seafood, dairy, beverage, and baked goods markets; and produces milk and whey proteins for the food ingredients industry. The Growing Solutions segment develops, manufactures, markets, and sells fertilizers based primarily on nitrogen, potash, and phosphate, including water soluble specialty, liquid, soluble, and controlled-release fertilizers. It sells its products through marketing companies, agents, and distributors. The company was formerly known as Israel Chemicals Ltd. and changed its name to ICL Group Ltd in May 2020. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Tel Aviv, Israel.