Critical Contrast: PrimeEnergy Resources (NASDAQ:PNRG) & Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR)

Murphy Oil (NYSE:MUR) and PrimeEnergy Resources (NASDAQ:PNRG) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, valuation, dividends, risk and institutional ownership.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Murphy Oil and PrimeEnergy Resources”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Murphy Oil	$3.03 billion	1.29	$407.17 million	$2.69	9.97
PrimeEnergy Resources	$123.12 million	2.75	$28.10 million	$23.26	8.47

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

Insider and Institutional Ownership

78.3% of Murphy Oil shares are held by institutional investors. 6.0% of Murphy Oil shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 61.1% of PrimeEnergy Resources shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk and Volatility

Murphy Oil has a beta of 2.14, meaning that its share price is 114% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, PrimeEnergy Resources has a beta of 0.54, meaning that its share price is 46% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Murphy Oil and PrimeEnergy Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Murphy Oil	1	9	4	0	2.21
PrimeEnergy Resources	0	0	0	0	0.00

Murphy Oil presently has a consensus target price of $36.33, suggesting a potential upside of 35.50%. Given Murphy Oil’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Murphy Oil is more favorable than PrimeEnergy Resources.

Profitability

This table compares Murphy Oil and PrimeEnergy Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Murphy Oil	13.44%	7.66%	4.28%
PrimeEnergy Resources	27.73%	32.76%	18.13%

Summary

Murphy Oil beats PrimeEnergy Resources on 8 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Murphy Oil

Murphy Oil Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, operates as an oil and gas exploration and production company in the United States, Canada, and internationally. It explores for and produces crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids. The company was formerly known as Murphy Corporation and changed its name to Murphy Oil Corporation in 1964. The company was incorporated in 1950 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About PrimeEnergy Resources

PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in acquisition, development, and production of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. The company owns leasehold, mineral, and royalty interests in producing and non-producing oil and gas properties; and operates approximately 534 active wells and owns non-operating interests and royalties in 952 additional wells. It also acquires producing oil and gas properties through joint ventures with industry partners; and provides contract services to third parties, including well-servicing support, site-preparation, and construction services for oil and gas drilling and reworking operations. The company was formerly known as PrimeEnergy Corporation and changed its name to PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation in December 2018. PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation was incorporated in 1973 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.