Head to Head Contrast: Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) and Talos Energy (NYSE:TALO)

Talos Energy (NYSE:TALO) and Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) are both energy companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, risk and earnings.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

89.3% of Talos Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 5.5% of Equinor ASA shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of Talos Energy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Equinor ASA shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Talos Energy and Equinor ASA, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Talos Energy	1	3	5	1	2.60
Equinor ASA	1	8	2	2	2.38

Talos Energy presently has a consensus target price of $19.00, suggesting a potential upside of 16.89%. Equinor ASA has a consensus target price of $43.47, suggesting a potential upside of 4.50%. Given Talos Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Talos Energy is more favorable than Equinor ASA.

Risk and Volatility

Talos Energy has a beta of 0.36, meaning that its share price is 64% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equinor ASA has a beta of 0.03, meaning that its share price is 97% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Talos Energy and Equinor ASA’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Talos Energy	-20.46%	-1.94%	-0.75%
Equinor ASA	7.92%	23.60%	7.21%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Talos Energy and Equinor ASA”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Talos Energy	$1.98 billion	1.37	-$494.29 million	($2.38)	-6.83
Equinor ASA	$113.65 billion	0.87	$5.04 billion	$3.67	11.33

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

Summary

Equinor ASA beats Talos Energy on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Talos Energy

Talos Energy Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States and Mexico. It also engages in the development of carbon capture and sequestration. Talos Energy Inc. was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Equinor ASA

Equinor ASA, an energy company, engages in the exploration, production, transportation, refining, and marketing of petroleum and other forms of energy in Norway and internationally. It operates through Exploration & Production Norway; Exploration & Production International; Exploration & Production USA; Marketing, Midstream & Processing; Renewables; and Other segments. The company also transports, processes, manufactures, markets, and trades in oil and gas commodities, such as crude and condensate products, gas liquids, natural gas, and liquefied natural gas; trades in power and emissions; operates refineries, terminals and processing, and power plants; and develops low carbon solutions for oil and gas. In addition, it develops carbon capture and storage projects; provides transportation solutions, including pipelines, shipping, trucking, and rail; and develops and explores for renewable energy, such as offshore wind, green hydrogen, and solar power. The company was formerly known as Statoil ASA and changed its name to Equinor ASA in May 2018. Equinor ASA was incorporated in 1972 and is headquartered in Stavanger, Norway.