Reviewing Unicharm (OTCMKTS:UNICY) and Nanophase Technologies (OTCMKTS:NANX)

Unicharm (OTCMKTS:UNICY) and Nanophase Technologies (OTCMKTS:NANX) are both consumer staples companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, dividends, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations and risk.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Unicharm and Nanophase Technologies”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Unicharm	$6.32 billion	1.68	$436.93 million	$0.13	23.54
Nanophase Technologies	$37.30 million	0.00	-$4.39 million	$0.05	N/A

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

Profitability

This table compares Unicharm and Nanophase Technologies’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Unicharm	6.65%	7.15%	5.25%
Nanophase Technologies	5.59%	31.49%	6.67%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

70.2% of Nanophase Technologies shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.1% of Nanophase Technologies shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Unicharm has a beta of 0.31, indicating that its stock price is 69% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Nanophase Technologies has a beta of 1.22, indicating that its stock price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Unicharm and Nanophase Technologies, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Unicharm	0	1	0	1	3.00
Nanophase Technologies	0	0	0	0	0.00

Given Nanophase Technologies’ higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Nanophase Technologies is more favorable than Unicharm.

Summary

Nanophase Technologies beats Unicharm on 7 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Unicharm

Unicharm Corporation engages in the manufacturing and sale of wellness, feminine, baby and children, kirei, and pet care products in Japan and internationally. The company's baby and child care products, including disposable diapers and wipes under the Moony, MamyPoko, Oyasumiman, and Torepanman brands; feminine care products comprise napkins, tampons, panty liners, sanitary short, panty liners, and other feminine care products under the Sofy, Center-In, and Unicharm brand names; and wellness care products include napkin-type incontinence pads, pants-type diapers, tape-type diapers, pants-type specialized urine pads, and tape-type specialized urine pads under the Lifree and Charmnap brand. It also provides masks under the Unicharm brand; home care products, including cleaning sheets under the Wave brand name; cosmetic cotton and wet wipes under the Silcot brand; and paper towels under the Cook Up brand name. In addition, the company offers pet care products that include pet foods, excrement cleanup sheets, system toilets, and disposable diapers under the Grand Deli, Best Balance, Physicalife Dog, Silver Plate, Aiken Genki, Manner Wear, Deo Sheet, Silver Spoon, AllWell, Physicalife Cat, Deo Toilet, Deo Sand, Deo Clean, and Neko Genki brands; and deodorizing beads. Further, it is involved in the manufacture and sale of industrial materials related products, etc., as well as food-packaging materials. Unicharm Corporation was incorporated in 1941 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

About Nanophase Technologies

Nanophase Technologies Corporation, a science-driven company, develops, manufactures, and sells integrated family of nanomaterial technologies in the United States. It engages in engineered materials, formulation development, and commercial manufacturing. The company produces engineered nanomaterial products comprising antimony, bismuth, cerium, iron, and zinc oxide for use in a various markets, including surface finishing,exterior coatings, personal care, plastics, scratch resistant coatings, and textiles. It also provides skin care formulations with mineral-based UV protection under the under the Solésence brand; and advanced material products, including architectural coatings, industrial coatings, abrasion-resistant additives, plastics additives, medical diagnostics, and surface finishing technologies applications. The company was incorporated in 1989 and is headquartered in Romeoville, Illinois.