Head to Head Review: Lithium Argentina (NYSE:LAR) vs. Vale (NYSE:VALE)

Lithium Argentina (NYSE:LAR) and Vale (NYSE:VALE) are both basic materials companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, earnings and risk.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Lithium Argentina and Vale, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lithium Argentina	0	1	1	0	2.50
Vale	0	7	3	0	2.30

Lithium Argentina currently has a consensus target price of $3.50, suggesting a potential upside of 64.32%. Vale has a consensus target price of $13.26, suggesting a potential upside of 31.25%. Given Lithium Argentina’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Lithium Argentina is more favorable than Vale.

Profitability

This table compares Lithium Argentina and Vale’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lithium Argentina	N/A	-1.37%	-1.08%
Vale	16.15%	17.38%	7.62%

Risk and Volatility

Lithium Argentina has a beta of 1.36, suggesting that its stock price is 36% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vale has a beta of 0.72, suggesting that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Lithium Argentina and Vale”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lithium Argentina	N/A	N/A	$1.29 billion	($0.09)	-23.67
Vale	$38.06 billion	1.20	$7.98 billion	$1.44	7.01

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

49.2% of Lithium Argentina shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 21.9% of Vale shares are held by institutional investors. 19.8% of Lithium Argentina shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Vale beats Lithium Argentina on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lithium Argentina

Lithium Argentina AG, a resource and materials company, focuses on advancing lithium projects in Argentina. The company owns interests in the Cauchari-Olaroz project located in Jujuy province; and the Pastos Grandes project located in Salta Province of Argentina. The company was formerly known as Lithium Americas (Argentina) Corp. and changed its name to Lithium Argentina AG in January 2025. Lithium Argentina AG was incorporated in 2007 is headquartered in Zug, Switzerland.

About Vale

Vale S.A., together with its subsidiaries, produces and sells iron ore and iron ore pellets for use as raw materials in steelmaking in Brazil and internationally. The company operates through Iron Solutions and Energy Transition Materials segments. The Iron Solutions segment produces and extracts iron ore and pellets, manganese, and other ferrous products; and provides related logistic services. The Energy Transition Materials segment produces and extracts nickel used to produce stainless steel, electric vehicles, and metal alloys; and its by-products, such as gold, silver, cobalt, precious metals, platinum, and others, as well as copper used in the construction sector to produce pipes and electrical wires. The company was formerly known as Companhia Vale do Rio Doce and changed its name to Vale S.A. in May 2009. Vale S.A. was founded in 1942 and is headquartered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.