Head-To-Head Contrast: Norsk Hydro ASA (OTCMKTS:NHYDY) & Materion (NYSE:MTRN)

Materion (NYSE:MTRN) and Norsk Hydro ASA (OTCMKTS:NHYDY) are both basic materials companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, profitability, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, risk and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares Materion and Norsk Hydro ASA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Materion	3.99%	12.45%	6.47%
Norsk Hydro ASA	3.11%	10.52%	5.50%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Materion and Norsk Hydro ASA, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Materion	0	2	2	0	2.50
Norsk Hydro ASA	2	6	2	2	2.33

Materion currently has a consensus target price of $237.00, suggesting a potential downside of 14.15%. Given Materion’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Materion is more favorable than Norsk Hydro ASA.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Materion and Norsk Hydro ASA”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Materion	$1.79 billion	3.21	$74.82 million	$3.66	75.42
Norsk Hydro ASA	$20.05 billion	1.03	$647.52 million	$0.31	33.68

Norsk Hydro ASA has higher revenue and earnings than Materion. Norsk Hydro ASA is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Materion, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility and Risk

Materion has a beta of 1.08, suggesting that its stock price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Norsk Hydro ASA has a beta of 0.98, suggesting that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

93.6% of Materion shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.0% of Norsk Hydro ASA shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.8% of Materion shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Norsk Hydro ASA shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Materion pays an annual dividend of $0.58 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. Norsk Hydro ASA pays an annual dividend of $0.23 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.2%. Materion pays out 15.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Norsk Hydro ASA pays out 74.2% 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. Materion has increased its dividend for 13 consecutive years.

Summary

Materion beats Norsk Hydro ASA on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Materion

Materion Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, produces advanced engineered materials used in semiconductor, industrial, aerospace and defense, automotive, energy, consumer electronics, and telecom and data center in the United States, Asia, Europe, and internationally. The company operates in four segments: Performance Materials, Electronic Materials, Precision Optics, and Other. The company provides advanced engineered solutions comprising beryllium and non-beryllium containing alloy systems and custom engineered parts in strip, bulk, rod, plate, bar, tube, and other customized shapes; engineering and product development services; alloyed metals, beryllium products, and beryllium hydroxide; precision strip, rod, and wire products, as well as engineered strip metal products; and ToughMet alloys and SupremEX aluminum silicon carbide metal matrix composite formulation products. It operates the bertrandite ore mine and refinery located in Utah that provides feedstock hydroxide for its beryllium businesses and external sale. In addition, it produces advanced chemicals, microelectronics packaging, precious metal, non-precious metal, and specialty metal products, including vapor deposition targets, frame lid assemblies, clad and precious metal pre-forms, high temperature braze materials, and ultra-pure wire. Further, the company designs and produces precision thin film coatings, optical filters, and assemblies. The company sells its products directly from its facilities, as well as through company-owned service centers, outside distributors, agents, direct sales offices, and independent sales representatives. The company was formerly known as Brush Engineered Materials Inc. and changed its name to Materion Corporation in March 2011. Materion Corporation was founded in 1921 and is headquartered in Mayfield Heights, Ohio.

About Norsk Hydro ASA

Norsk Hydro ASA engages in the power production, bauxite extraction, alumina refining, aluminium smelting, and recycling activities; and provision of extruded solutions worldwide. It operates through Hydro Bauxite & Alumina, Hydro Aluminium Metal, Hydro Metal Markets, Hydro Extrusions, and Hydro Energy segments. The Hydro Bauxite & Alumina segment engages in bauxite mining activities, production of alumina, and related commercial activities, primarily the sale of alumina. The Hydro Aluminium Metal segment is involved in the primary aluminum production casting activities. This segment principally offers extrusion ingots, foundry alloys, and sheet and standard ingots. The Metal Markets segment sells products from the company’s primary metal plants; operates recyclers; and trades in physical and financial metals. The Hydro Extrusions segment offers extrusion profiles, building systems, and precision tubing products for construction, automotive and heating, and ventilation and air conditioning sectors, as well as operates recycling facilities. The Hydro Energy segment engages in the trading and wholesale business in Brazil; energy sourcing operations; and operation of power stations in Norway, as well as renewable energy production, such as wind and solar, battery materials, and green hydrogen. Norsk Hydro ASA was founded in 1905 and is headquartered in Oslo, Norway.