ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and PrimeEnergy (NASDAQ:PNRG) Head-To-Head Contrast

PrimeEnergy (NASDAQ:PNRG) and ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) are both energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, risk, dividends, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership and valuation.

Volatility and Risk

PrimeEnergy has a beta of -0.24, suggesting that its share price is 124% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ConocoPhillips has a beta of 0.13, suggesting that its share price is 87% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares PrimeEnergy and ConocoPhillips”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PrimeEnergy	$189.05 million	1.78	$26.31 million	$10.38	20.55
ConocoPhillips	$61.55 billion	2.60	$7.99 billion	$7.56	17.63

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

Profitability

This table compares PrimeEnergy and ConocoPhillips’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PrimeEnergy	13.87%	11.47%	7.67%
ConocoPhillips	14.22%	14.72%	7.77%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for PrimeEnergy and ConocoPhillips, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PrimeEnergy	0	2	0	0	2.00
ConocoPhillips	2	7	17	1	2.63

ConocoPhillips has a consensus target price of $140.29, suggesting a potential upside of 5.27%. Given ConocoPhillips’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe ConocoPhillips is more favorable than PrimeEnergy.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

82.4% of ConocoPhillips shares are held by institutional investors. 65.3% of PrimeEnergy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of ConocoPhillips shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

ConocoPhillips beats PrimeEnergy on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PrimeEnergy

PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in acquisition, development, and production of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. The company owns leasehold, mineral, and royalty interests in producing and non-producing oil and gas properties; and operates approximately 534 active wells and owns non-operating interests and royalties in 952 additional wells. It also acquires producing oil and gas properties through joint ventures with industry partners; and provides contract services to third parties, including well-servicing support, site-preparation, and construction services for oil and gas drilling and reworking operations. The company was formerly known as PrimeEnergy Corporation and changed its name to PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation in December 2018. PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation was incorporated in 1973 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips explores for, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and natural gas liquids in the United States, Canada, China, Libya, Malaysia, Norway, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's portfolio includes unconventional plays in North America; conventional assets in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia; global LNG developments; oil sands assets in Canada; and an inventory of global exploration prospects. ConocoPhillips was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.