Reviewing North American Palladium (OTCMKTS:PALDF) and Western Copper & Gold (NYSE:WRN)

Western Copper & Gold (NYSE:WRN) and North American Palladium (OTCMKTS:PALDF) are both small-cap basic materials companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and dividends.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

22.0% of Western Copper & Gold shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.6% of Western Copper & Gold shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of North American Palladium shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Risk and Volatility

Western Copper & Gold has a beta of 1.83, meaning that its stock price is 83% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, North American Palladium has a beta of 2.08, meaning that its stock price is 108% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Western Copper & Gold and North American Palladium, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Western Copper & Gold	0	0	3	1	3.25
North American Palladium	0	0	0	0	0.00

Western Copper & Gold presently has a consensus price target of $4.25, suggesting a potential upside of 295.35%. Given Western Copper & Gold’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Western Copper & Gold is more favorable than North American Palladium.

Profitability

This table compares Western Copper & Gold and North American Palladium’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Western Copper & Gold	N/A	-3.53%	-3.45%
North American Palladium	35.18%	24.49%	20.79%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Western Copper & Gold and North American Palladium”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Western Copper & Gold	N/A	N/A	-$2.47 million	($0.02)	-53.75
North American Palladium	$306.17 million	2.88	$91.96 million	N/A	N/A

North American Palladium has higher revenue and earnings than Western Copper & Gold.

Summary

North American Palladium beats Western Copper & Gold on 7 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Western Copper & Gold

Western Copper and Gold Corporation, an exploration stage company, engages in the exploration and development of mineral properties in Canada. The company explores for gold, copper, silver, and molybdenum deposits. Its principal property is the Casino mineral property that comprise 1,136 full and partial quartz claims, and 55 placer claims located in Yukon, Canada. The company was formerly known as Western Copper Corporation and changed its name to Western Copper and Gold Corporation in October 2011. Western Copper and Gold Corporation was incorporated in 2006 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About North American Palladium

North American Palladium Ltd. produces precious metals in Canada. It explores for palladium, platinum, gold, nickel, copper, and other metals. It primarily holds interest in the Lac des Iles mine that is located to the northwest of Thunder Bay, Ontario. The company was founded in 1968 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.