Comparing Cadiz (NASDAQ:CDZI) & Lavoro (NASDAQ:LVRO)

Cadiz (NASDAQ:CDZI) and Lavoro (NASDAQ:LVRO) are both small-cap consumer staples companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership and dividends.

Volatility and Risk

Cadiz has a beta of 2.02, meaning that its stock price is 102% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Lavoro has a beta of 0.51, meaning that its stock price is 49% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

79.8% of Cadiz shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 2.5% of Lavoro shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.7% of Cadiz shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Cadiz and Lavoro”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Cadiz	$9.61 million	54.14	-$31.14 million	($0.49)	-12.78
Lavoro	$1.14 billion	0.12	-$466.28 million	($1.57)	-0.72

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings for Cadiz and Lavoro, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Cadiz	1	1	1	0	2.00
Lavoro	3	1	0	0	1.25

Cadiz currently has a consensus price target of $10.00, suggesting a potential upside of 59.74%. Lavoro has a consensus price target of $3.44, suggesting a potential upside of 202.86%. Given Lavoro’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Lavoro is more favorable than Cadiz.

Profitability

This table compares Cadiz and Lavoro’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Cadiz	-206.65%	-93.48%	-24.26%
Lavoro	N/A	N/A	N/A

Summary

Cadiz beats Lavoro on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Cadiz

Cadiz Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides water solutions in the United States. The company operates through Land and Water Resources; and Water Filtration Technology segments. It offers water supply, water storage, water conveyance, and water filtration services. In addition, the company is involved in the cultivation of grain crops and alfalfa, as well as provides water filtration solutions for impaired or contaminated groundwater sources. It serves public water systems, government agencies, and other clients. Cadiz Inc. was founded in 1983 and is based in Los Angeles, California.

About Lavoro

Lavoro Limited operates as an agricultural inputs retailer. The company operates through three segments: Brazil Cluster, LATAM Cluster, and Crop Care Cluster. It distributes agricultural inputs, such as crop protection, seeds, fertilizers, foliar fertilizers, biologicals, adjuvants, organominerals, and others for the agricultural industry. The company also produces specialty fertilizers, crop protection products, and biological crop inputs. It operates in Brazil, Colombia, and Uruguay. The company sells its products through its physical stores and digital channel. Lavoro Limited was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil.