Reviewing Alto Ingredients (NASDAQ:ALTO) & Traeger (NYSE:COOK)

Alto Ingredients (NASDAQ:ALTO) and Traeger (NYSE:COOK) are both small-cap consumer discretionary companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and profitability.

Risk & Volatility

Alto Ingredients has a beta of 0.13, meaning that its share price is 87% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Traeger has a beta of 1.95, meaning that its share price is 95% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Alto Ingredients and Traeger”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Alto Ingredients	$917.93 million	0.37	$13.34 million	$0.37	11.78
Traeger	$559.52 million	0.29	-$115.18 million	($41.92)	-1.40

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

Insider & Institutional Ownership

42.4% of Alto Ingredients shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 46.8% of Traeger shares are held by institutional investors. 4.3% of Alto Ingredients shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 16.2% of Traeger shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Alto Ingredients and Traeger’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Alto Ingredients	3.20%	9.77%	5.81%
Traeger	-21.84%	-13.76%	-3.95%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Alto Ingredients and Traeger, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Alto Ingredients	0	2	1	0	2.33
Traeger	1	4	1	1	2.29

Alto Ingredients presently has a consensus price target of $10.00, suggesting a potential upside of 129.36%. Traeger has a consensus price target of $50.08, suggesting a potential downside of 14.95%. Given Alto Ingredients’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Alto Ingredients is more favorable than Traeger.

Summary

Alto Ingredients beats Traeger on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Alto Ingredients

Alto Ingredients, Inc. produces, distributes, and markets specialty alcohols, renewable fuel, and essential ingredients in the United States. The company operates in three segments: Marketing and Distribution, Pekin Campus Production, and Western Production. It offers specialty alcohols used in mouthwash, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, hand sanitizers, disinfectants, and cleaners for health, home, and beauty markets; grain neutral spirits used in alcoholic beverages and vinegar, as well as corn germ used in corn oils in the food and beverage markets; alcohols and other products for paint applications and fertilizers in the industrial and agriculture markets; and essential ingredients include dried yeast, corn protein meal, corn protein feed, distiller's grains, and liquid feed for commercial animal feed and pet food applications, as well as yeast for human consumption. The company also provides fuel-grade ethanol used as transportation fuel and distillers corn oil used as a biodiesel feedstock, as well as fuel-grade ethanol produced by third parties. In addition, it offers transportation, storage, and delivery services through third-party service providers. The company sells ethanol to integrated oil companies and gasoline marketers; essential ingredient feed products to dairies and feedlots; and corn oil to poultry, renewable diesel, and biodiesel customers. It operates alcohol production facilities. The company was formerly known as Pacific Ethanol, Inc. and changed its name to Alto Ingredients, Inc. in January 2021. Alto Ingredients, Inc. was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Pekin, Illinois.

About Traeger

Traeger, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, designs, sources, sells, and supports wood pellet fueled barbecue grills for retailers, distributors, and direct to consumers in the United States. Its wood pellet grills are internet of things devices that allow owners to program, monitor, and control their grill through its Traeger app. The company also produces a library of digital content, including instructional recipes and videos that demonstrate tips, tricks, and cooking techniques that empower Traeger owners to progress their cooking skills; and short- and long-form branded content highlighting stories, community members, and lifestyle content from the Traegerhood. In addition, it provides wood pellets that are used to fire the grills; rubs, spices, and sauces; accessories, such as pop-and-lock accessory rail covers, drip trays, bucket liners, storage bins, and shelves; tools to aid in meal prep, cooking, and cleanup, including pellet storage systems, cleaning solutions, barbecue tools, and MEATER smart thermometer; replacement parts; and apparel and merchandise, including t-shirts, hooded sweatshirts, and baseball hats. Traeger, Inc. was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah.