Financial Analysis: PrimeEnergy (NASDAQ:PNRG) and HighPeak Energy (NASDAQ:HPK)

PrimeEnergy (NASDAQ:PNRG) and HighPeak Energy (NASDAQ:HPK) are both small-cap energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, institutional ownership and profitability.

Volatility and Risk

PrimeEnergy has a beta of -0.28, indicating that its stock price is 128% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, HighPeak Energy has a beta of 0.05, indicating that its stock price is 95% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares PrimeEnergy and HighPeak Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PrimeEnergy	13.87%	11.47%	7.67%
HighPeak Energy	-13.84%	0.76%	0.37%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

24.1% of HighPeak Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 65.3% of PrimeEnergy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.6% of HighPeak Energy shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for PrimeEnergy and HighPeak Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PrimeEnergy	0	2	0	0	2.00
HighPeak Energy	1	0	0	1	2.50

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares PrimeEnergy and HighPeak Energy”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PrimeEnergy	$189.05 million	1.60	$26.31 million	$10.38	18.48
HighPeak Energy	$863.36 million	1.22	$18.96 million	($1.08)	-7.71

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

Summary

PrimeEnergy beats HighPeak Energy on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PrimeEnergy

PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation is an independent oil and natural gas company focused on acquiring, developing and producing oil and gas properties in the United States. The company’s operations are concentrated in Texas, with additional activity in other U.S. producing regions. Its work includes developing existing properties and producing oil and natural gas from its asset base. PrimeEnergy was founded in 1973 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About HighPeak Energy

HighPeak Energy, Inc. is an independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company. It focuses on acquiring, developing and operating oil and gas properties, with production that includes crude oil, natural gas and natural gas liquids. The company’s operations are concentrated in the Permian Basin of West Texas, particularly in Howard and Borden counties. Its activities include drilling and completing wells and managing the infrastructure needed to produce and transport hydrocarbons.