Green Plains, Inc. GPRE

Competitive advantage analysis · basic-materials

Corporate Default
Overall moat score
53/100
Moderate

Ranked against 17 peers in Chemicals

About Green Plains, Inc.

Green Plains Inc. produces low-carbon fuels in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Ethanol Production, and Agribusiness and Energy Services. The company produces, stores, and transports ethanol, distiller grains, and ultra-high protein and renewable corn oil. It is also involved in the grain procurement and commodity marketing businesses; and marketing ethanol for a third-party producer, as … Full GPRE analysis →

Key strengths

  • Margins Stable Across Cycles Operating margin volatility is low (stability score 1.00), demonstrating pricing resilience across cycles.
  • Operating Leverage in Effect Operating leverage is evident (score 0.76), with margins expanding over time.

Key risks

  • Elevated Debt Risk Debt serviceability is weak (score 0.36), raising refinancing risk.
  • ROIC Below WACC or Peers ROIC at 35.3th percentile suggests inefficient capital deployment.

The dashed ring is the peer median. Defense scores are percentile ranks against peers, so 50 is roughly the typical company in this group.

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Pricing Power

Moderate
62
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Signals, strengths and risks for Pricing Power

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Signals, strengths and risks for Cost Advantage

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Signals, strengths and risks for Customer Stickiness

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Signals, strengths and risks for Capital Efficiency

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Signals, strengths and risks for Resilience

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Signals, strengths and risks for Scale & Market Position

Where GPRE ranks in Chemicals

Green Plains, Inc. ranks #7 of 18 scored companies in Chemicals by moat score — the top 39%. The widest moat in the group is Westlake Chemical Partners LP (WLKP) at 88/100.

# Company Moat score Rating
3 Methanex Corporation MEOH 77/100 Strong
4 AdvanSix Inc. ASIX 64/100 Moderate
5 LSB Industries, Inc. LXU 57/100 Moderate
6 Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc RYAM 57/100 Moderate
7 Green Plains, Inc. GPRE 53/100 Moderate
8 Valhi, Inc. VHI 53/100 Moderate
9 Dow Inc. DOW 49/100 Developing
10 Huntsman Corporation HUN 47/100 Developing
11 Olin Corporation OLN 45/100 Developing

See every General Corporate company ranked by moat score →

How GPRE scores on the Corporate Default defenses

Pricing Power

Score 62 · 20% of the moat score

Pricing power is the ability to raise prices without losing volume.

Cost Advantage

Score 53 · 15% of the moat score

A cost advantage means delivering the same product for structurally less — better purchasing, denser distribution, a more automated process.

Customer Stickiness

Score 48 · 15% of the moat score

Stickiness is what makes revenue repeat without being re-won every year.

Capital Efficiency

Score 55 · 18% of the moat score

Capital efficiency asks what the company earns on the money tied up in the business.

Resilience

Score 41 · 17% of the moat score

Resilience is the capacity to get through a bad year on its own terms — enough liquidity, enough interest cover, and enough cash generation to avoid a rescue financing or a forced sale.

Scale & Market Position

Score 56 · 15% of the moat score

Scale matters only when it converts into economics.

How each Corporate Default defense is measured, in full →

Understanding GPRE's moat

What is Green Plains, Inc.'s moat score?

Green Plains, Inc. (GPRE) scores 53 out of 100 on the StatsAlpha Moat Map, which rates its competitive advantage as moderate. It ranks #7 of 18 scored companies in Chemicals, the top 39%. The score is a weighted composite of 6 competitive defenses, each measured against industry peers of 17 companies in Chemicals. Its strongest defense is Pricing Power (62/100) and its weakest is Resilience (41/100).

How does Green Plains, Inc. compare with other Chemicals companies?

Green Plains, Inc. ranks #7 of 18 scored companies in Chemicals by moat score. The widest moat in Chemicals is Westlake Chemical Partners LP (WLKP) at 88/100. The companies ranked closest are Rayonier Advanced Materials Inc (RYAM) at 56 just above it and Valhi, Inc. (VHI) at 53 just below it.

How is the moat score calculated?

Each company is scored with an industry-specific template — Corporate Default in this case, chosen because the defenses that matter to a bank are not the ones that matter to a software company. Every defense combines several financial signals, and each signal is measured as a percentile against a peer group of 17 companies in Chemicals. The defenses are then weighted to produce the overall score out of 100.

Why is Green Plains, Inc. scored with the Corporate Default template?

Most public companies sell a product or a service at a margin, so the moat question is whether that margin survives contact with competitors. The Corporate template scores the six defenses that show up in a general operating company's financial signature: whether it can hold price, produce more cheaply than rivals, keep its customers, earn a return above its cost of capital, withstand a downturn, and turn size into economics.

Which competitive defenses are measured for Green Plains, Inc.?

The Corporate Default template measures 6 defenses, and GPRE scores: Pricing Power (62), Cost Advantage (53), Customer Stickiness (48), Capital Efficiency (55), Resilience (41), Scale & Market Position (56). Each is scored independently as a percentile against peers, so a company can be strong on one and weak on another — the overall score reflects how those defenses are weighted for this industry.

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