Critical Contrast: Advantage Energy (OTCMKTS:AAVVF) vs. Battalion Oil (NYSE:BATL)

Battalion Oil (NYSE:BATL) and Advantage Energy (OTCMKTS:AAVVF) are both small-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Battalion Oil and Advantage Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Battalion Oil	0	1	0	0	2.00
Advantage Energy	0	2	1	0	2.33

Battalion Oil currently has a consensus price target of $18.60, suggesting a potential upside of 486.75%. Advantage Energy has a consensus price target of $11.00, suggesting a potential upside of 46.28%. Given Battalion Oil’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Battalion Oil is more favorable than Advantage Energy.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

86.0% of Battalion Oil shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 7.9% of Advantage Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 56.9% of Battalion Oil shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Battalion Oil and Advantage Energy’s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Battalion Oil	$220.76 million	0.24	-$3.05 million	($4.46)	-0.71
Advantage Energy	$400.81 million	3.02	$75.26 million	$0.42	17.90

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

Profitability

This table compares Battalion Oil and Advantage Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Battalion Oil	-27.77%	-70.13%	-9.01%
Advantage Energy	18.36%	6.10%	4.14%

Risk and Volatility

Battalion Oil has a beta of 1.01, indicating that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Advantage Energy has a beta of 1.64, indicating that its stock price is 64% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Advantage Energy beats Battalion Oil on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Battalion Oil

Battalion Oil Corporation, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, production, exploration, and development of onshore oil and natural gas assets in the United States. It holds interests in the Delaware Basin located in the counties of Pecos, Ward, Reeves, and Winkler, Texas. It serves independent marketers, and oil and natural gas and gas pipeline companies. The company was formerly known as Halcón Resources Corporation and changed its name to Battalion Oil Corporation in January 2020. Battalion Oil Corporation was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Advantage Energy

Advantage Energy Ltd., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploitation, development, and production natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids (NGLs) in the Province of Alberta, Canada. Its assets are located approximately 4 to 80 km northwest of the city of Grande Prairie, Alberta. The company was formerly known as Advantage Oil & Gas Ltd. and changed its name to Advantage Energy Ltd. in May 2021. Advantage Energy Ltd. was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.