Contrasting Tidewater (NYSE:TDW) & Tenaris (NYSE:TS)

Tidewater (NYSE:TDW) and Tenaris (NYSE:TS) are both energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership and profitability.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Tidewater and Tenaris, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Tidewater	0	5	3	1	2.56
Tenaris	0	6	5	1	2.58

Tidewater presently has a consensus price target of $98.25, suggesting a potential upside of 23.66%. Tenaris has a consensus price target of $63.84, suggesting a potential upside of 4.56%. Given Tidewater’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Tidewater is more favorable than Tenaris.

Profitability

This table compares Tidewater and Tenaris’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Tidewater	19.42%	4.49%	2.61%
Tenaris	16.24%	11.53%	9.66%

Volatility & Risk

Tidewater has a beta of 0.63, indicating that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Tenaris has a beta of 0.89, indicating that its stock price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Tidewater and Tenaris”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Tidewater	$1.37 billion	2.89	$334.66 million	$5.31	14.96
Tenaris	$11.98 billion	2.57	$1.93 billion	$3.90	15.66

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

Dividends

Tidewater pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.3%. Tenaris pays an annual dividend of $2.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Tidewater pays out 18.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Tenaris pays out 61.5% 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.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

95.1% of Tidewater shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 10.4% of Tenaris shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.9% of Tidewater shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of Tenaris shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Tenaris beats Tidewater on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Tidewater

Tidewater Inc. provides offshore support vessels and related marine services to the energy industry. Its vessels transport personnel, equipment and supplies between shore bases and offshore facilities, and support activities such as anchor handling, towing, platform operations and offshore construction. The company operates a diverse fleet that includes platform supply vessels, anchor-handling tug supply vessels, crew boats and other specialized vessels. These services help customers carry out offshore exploration, development and production, as well as certain renewable-energy and subsea projects.

About Tenaris

Tenaris S.A. is a global manufacturer and supplier of steel pipe products and related services, with a primary focus on the energy industry. Its products include casing and tubing used in oil and gas wells, line pipe for transporting fluids, and other tubular products for industrial applications. The company also provides services such as pipe processing, engineering support, logistics, and assistance at drilling sites. Tenaris serves customers across a broad range of international markets, including the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.