Marine Harvest ASA (OTC:MHGVY) vs. AquaBounty Technologies (NASDAQ:AQB) Critical Analysis

AquaBounty Technologies (NASDAQ:AQB) and Marine Harvest ASA (OTC:MHGVY) are both medical companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership and valuation.

Volatility & Risk

AquaBounty Technologies has a beta of 1.18, meaning that its share price is 18% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Marine Harvest ASA has a beta of 1.34, meaning that its share price is 34% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares AquaBounty Technologies and Marine Harvest ASA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
AquaBounty Technologies	-5,842.69%	-18.20%	-15.61%
Marine Harvest ASA	7.65%	13.34%	6.29%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares AquaBounty Technologies and Marine Harvest ASA”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
AquaBounty Technologies	$2.47 million	1.18	-$27.56 million	($19.05)	-0.04
Marine Harvest ASA	$5.96 billion	1.68	$480.97 million	$0.90	21.52

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for AquaBounty Technologies and Marine Harvest ASA, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
AquaBounty Technologies	0	2	0	0	2.00
Marine Harvest ASA	0	0	0	0	0.00

Institutional and Insider Ownership

8.9% of AquaBounty Technologies shares are held by institutional investors. 2.3% of AquaBounty Technologies shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Marine Harvest ASA beats AquaBounty Technologies on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About AquaBounty Technologies

AquaBounty Technologies, Inc., a biotechnology company, operates in the aquaculture industry in the United States and Canada. The company engages in genetic, genomic, and fish health and nutrition research activities. It also operates salmon farms using proprietary technology. In addition, the company offers AquAdvantage Salmon, a genetically engineered Atlantic salmon for human consumption; and sells conventional Atlantic salmon, salmon eggs, fry, and byproducts. The company was formerly known as Aqua Bounty Farms, Inc. and changed its name to AquaBounty Technologies, Inc. in June 2004. AquaBounty Technologies, Inc. was incorporated in 1991 and is headquartered in Harvard, Massachusetts.

About Marine Harvest ASA

Mowi ASA, a seafood company, farms, produces, and supplies Atlantic salmon products worldwide. It operates through three segments: Feed, Farming, and Sales and Marketing. The company is involved in the salmon feed production, salmon farming and primary processing, and seafood secondary processing activities. It offers whole fish, plain and marinated fillets and steaks, hot- and cold-smoked salmon, burgers and tartars, patties, gravad, sushi, and breaded products under the Ducktrap, MOWI, and Supreme Salmon brands. The company was formerly known as Marine Harvest ASA and changed its name to Mowi ASA in December 2018. Mowi ASA was founded in 1964 and is headquartered in Bergen, Norway.