Comparing Yara International ASA (OTCMKTS:YARIY) & Capstone Mining (OTCMKTS:CSFFF)

Capstone Mining (OTCMKTS:CSFFF) and Yara International ASA (OTCMKTS:YARIY) are both mid-cap basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability, risk and dividends.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

0.6% of Capstone Mining shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.0% of Yara International ASA shares are held by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Capstone Mining and Yara International ASA”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Capstone Mining	$1.35 billion	0.00	-$101.67 million	$0.03	N/A
Yara International ASA	$15.55 billion	0.44	$48.00 million	$1.08	12.43

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Capstone Mining and Yara International ASA, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Capstone Mining	0	0	0	0	0.00
Yara International ASA	1	0	0	0	1.00

Given Capstone Mining’s higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Capstone Mining is more favorable than Yara International ASA.

Profitability

This table compares Capstone Mining and Yara International ASA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Capstone Mining	1.64%	1.62%	0.88%
Yara International ASA	3.89%	9.32%	4.36%

Summary

Yara International ASA beats Capstone Mining on 7 of the 10 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Capstone Mining

Capstone Mining Corp. engages in the exploration and production of base metals in the United States, Mexico, Canada, and Chile. The company explores for copper, molybdenum, silver, zinc, lead, iron, and gold deposits. It holds interests in the Pinto Valley, an open pit copper mine located in Arizona, the United States; and the Cozamin, a copper-silver underground mine located in the state of Zacatecas, Mexico. The company also owns a 100% interest in copper-iron-gold Santo Domingo development project in Region III, Chile. The company was formerly known as Capstone Gold Corp. and changed its name to Capstone Mining Corp. in February 2006. The company is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

About Yara International ASA

Yara International ASA provides crop nutrition and industrial solutions in Norway, European Union, Europe, Africa, Asia, North and Latin America, Australia, and New Zealand. The company offers ammonium- and urea-based fertilizers; compound fertilizers that contain nutrients, such as nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium; coatings; biostimulants; organic-based fertilizers; green fertilizers are nitrate-based mineral fertilizers, as well as foliar and fertigation solutions; and nitrate, calcium nitrate, micronutrient, and fertigation and urea fertilizers. It also offers digital solutions, such as variable rate application solutions; N-Sensor, a tractor-mounted hardware; N-Tester, a handheld nitrogen measurement tool; YaraFX Insight, an agricultural API; and Atfarm, a digital toolbox for farmer. The company sells its products under YaraBela, YaraMila, YaraLiva, YaraVita, YaraRega, YaraTera, YaraSuna, and YaraVera and brands. Yara International ASA was founded in 1905 and is headquartered in Oslo, Norway.