Reviewing Toro (NASDAQ:TORO) and Dorian LPG (NYSE:LPG)

Toro (NASDAQ:TORO) and Dorian LPG (NYSE:LPG) are both small-cap transportation companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, valuation, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings and institutional ownership.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Toro and Dorian LPG, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Toro	0	0	0	0	N/A
Dorian LPG	0	1	2	0	2.67

Dorian LPG has a consensus price target of $43.00, indicating a potential upside of 0.02%. Given Dorian LPG’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Dorian LPG is more favorable than Toro.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

1.7% of Toro shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.5% of Dorian LPG shares are owned by institutional investors. 15.9% of Dorian LPG shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility & Risk

Toro has a beta of 2.1, meaning that its stock price is 110% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Dorian LPG has a beta of 1.06, meaning that its stock price is 6% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Toro and Dorian LPG’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Toro	259.21%	50.68%	27.87%
Dorian LPG	54.83%	32.22%	17.21%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Toro and Dorian LPG’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Toro	$78.47 million	0.93	$140.64 million	$2.78	1.38
Dorian LPG	$560.72 million	3.11	$307.45 million	$7.60	5.66

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

Summary

Dorian LPG beats Toro on 9 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Toro

Toro Corp., a shipping company, acquires, owns, charters, and operates oceangoing tanker vessels and provides seaborne transportation services for crude oil LPG, and refined petroleum products worldwide. The company operates in three segments: Aframax/LR2 Tanker, Handysize Tanker, and LPG Carrier. As of December 31, 2023, it operated a fleet of one Handysize tanker vessel; one Aframax/LR2 vessel; and four LPG carrier vessels with an aggregate cargo carrying capacity of 0.1 million deadweight ton. Toro Corp. was incorporated in 2022 and is based in Limassol, Cyprus.

About Dorian LPG

Dorian LPG Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the transportation of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) through its LPG tankers worldwide. It owns and operates twenty-five very large gas carriers (VLGCs). The company was incorporated in 2013 and is headquartered in Stamford, Connecticut.