California Resources (OTCMKTS:CRCQQ) & Crescent Energy (NYSE:CRGY) Critical Review

Crescent Energy (NYSE:CRGY) and California Resources (OTCMKTS:CRCQQ) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, valuation, risk, institutional ownership, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Crescent Energy and California Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Crescent Energy	2.17%	12.53%	3.61%
California Resources	-95.33%	-4.31%	-3.78%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Crescent Energy and California Resources”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Crescent Energy	$2.38 billion	1.42	$67.61 million	$0.62	23.95
California Resources	$2.63 billion	0.00	-$28.00 million	N/A	N/A

Crescent Energy has higher earnings, but lower revenue than California Resources.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings for Crescent Energy and California Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Crescent Energy	0	2	7	2	3.00
California Resources	0	0	0	0	0.00

Crescent Energy presently has a consensus target price of $16.30, suggesting a potential upside of 9.76%. Given Crescent Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Crescent Energy is more favorable than California Resources.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

52.1% of Crescent Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 35.7% of California Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 13.2% of Crescent Energy shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 4.1% of California Resources shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Crescent Energy beats California Resources on 12 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Crescent Energy

Crescent Energy Company acquires, develops, and produces crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (NGLs) reserves. Its portfolio of assets comprises mid-cycle unconventional and conventional assets in the Eagle Ford and Uinta Basins. It also owns and operates various midstream assets, which provide services to customers. The company is based in Houston, Texas.

About California Resources

California Resources Corporation operates as an oil and natural gas exploration and production company in the State of California. The company sells crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids to marketers, California refineries, and other purchasers that have access to transportation and storage facilities. It holds interests in approximately 2.2 million net acres of mineral acreage. As of December 31, 2019, the company had net proved reserves of 644 million barrels of oil equivalent. It also engages in the generation and sale of electricity to the grid and utility customers. The company was founded in 2014 and is based in Los Angeles, California. On July 15, 2020, California Resources Corporation, along with its affiliates, filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas.