Analyzing i-80 Gold (NYSE:IAUX) & Excellon Resources (OTCMKTS:EXNRF)

Excellon Resources (OTCMKTS:EXNRF) and i-80 Gold (NYSE:IAUX) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Excellon Resources and i-80 Gold’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Excellon Resources	N/A	-482.08%	-43.80%
i-80 Gold	-231.43%	-21.18%	-12.67%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

61.3% of i-80 Gold shares are held by institutional investors. 3.2% of Excellon Resources shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Excellon Resources and i-80 Gold, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Excellon Resources	0	0	0	0	0.00
i-80 Gold	0	2	0	1	2.67

i-80 Gold has a consensus target price of $3.50, suggesting a potential upside of 455.73%. Given i-80 Gold’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe i-80 Gold is more favorable than Excellon Resources.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Excellon Resources and i-80 Gold”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Excellon Resources	$25.82 million	0.61	$6.53 million	($0.13)	-0.88
i-80 Gold	$52.94 million	5.26	-$65.20 million	($0.36)	-1.75

Excellon Resources has higher earnings, but lower revenue than i-80 Gold. i-80 Gold is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Excellon Resources, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

Excellon Resources has a beta of 0.79, meaning that its stock price is 21% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, i-80 Gold has a beta of 1.13, meaning that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

i-80 Gold beats Excellon Resources on 9 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Excellon Resources

Excellon Resources Inc. engages in the acquisition, exploration, and advancement of mineral properties. It primarily explores for silver, lead, zinc, and gold deposits, as well as base metals. The company holds 100% interests in the Platosa property covering an area of approximately 11,000 hectares located in Durango State, Mexico; the Evolución property that covers an area of 31,280 hectares situated in the states of Durango and Zacatecas, Mexico; and the Silver City project totaling an area of 340 square kilometers in Saxony, Germany. It also holds 100% interests in the Kilgore project comprising 789 unpatented federal lode claims that covers an area of 6,788 hectares located in Clark County, eastern Idaho; and the Oakley project covering an area of 2,833 hectares in Oakley, Idaho. In addition, the company has an option to acquire the La Negra project located in Querétaro State, Mexico. Excellon Resources Inc. was incorporated in 1987 and is based in Toronto, Canada.

About i-80 Gold

i-80 Gold Corp. is a mining company, engages in the exploration, development and production of gold and silver mineral deposits principally in the United States. i-80 Gold Corp. is based in Reno, Nevada.