Analyzing EQT (NYSE:EQT) and Permian Resources (NYSE:PR)

EQT (NYSE:EQT) and Permian Resources (NYSE:PR) are both large-cap energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for EQT and Permian Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
EQT	0	5	19	3	2.93
Permian Resources	0	2	12	4	3.11

EQT currently has a consensus price target of $67.04, indicating a potential upside of 5.44%. Permian Resources has a consensus price target of $21.43, indicating a potential upside of 0.56%. Given EQT’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts plainly believe EQT is more favorable than Permian Resources.

Profitability

This table compares EQT and Permian Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
EQT	23.59%	7.25%	4.63%
Permian Resources	18.46%	10.83%	6.91%

Risk and Volatility

EQT has a beta of 0.72, suggesting that its stock price is 28% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Permian Resources has a beta of 0.66, suggesting that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares EQT and Permian Resources”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
EQT	$8.64 billion	4.60	$2.04 billion	$3.31	19.21
Permian Resources	$5.07 billion	3.52	$935.17 million	$1.25	17.05

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

Dividends

EQT pays an annual dividend of $0.66 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.0%. Permian Resources pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.0%. EQT pays out 19.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Permian Resources pays out 51.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. EQT has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and Permian Resources has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

90.8% of EQT shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.8% of Permian Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of EQT shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 12.8% of Permian Resources shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

EQT beats Permian Resources on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About EQT

EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. The company sells natural gas and natural gas liquids to marketers, utilities, and industrial customers through pipelines located in the Appalachian Basin. It also offers marketing services and contractual pipeline capacity management services. The company was formerly known as Equitable Resources Inc. and changed its name to EQT Corporation in February 2009. EQT Corporation was founded in 1878 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

About Permian Resources

Permian Resources Corporation, an independent oil and natural gas company, focuses on the development of crude oil and related liquids-rich natural gas reserves in the United States. The company’s assets primarily focus on the Delaware Basin, a sub-basin of the Permian Basin. Its properties consist of acreage blocks in West Texas, Eddy County, Lea County, and New Mexico. The company was formerly known as Centennial Resource Development, Inc. and changed its name to Permian Resources Corporation in September 2022. Permian Resources Corporation was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Midland, Texas.