Analyzing Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) & Obsidian Energy (OTCMKTS:OBELF)

Chesapeake Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) and Obsidian Energy (OTCMKTS:OBELF) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, risk, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Risk and Volatility

Chesapeake Energy has a beta of 0.46, indicating that its share price is 54% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Obsidian Energy has a beta of 2.47, indicating that its share price is 147% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Chesapeake Energy and Obsidian Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Chesapeake Energy	6.07%	2.74%	2.08%
Obsidian Energy	99.13%	78.07%	35.32%

Valuation & Earnings

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Chesapeake Energy	$4.03 billion	5.70	$2.42 billion	$1.62	61.38
Obsidian Energy	$220.00 million	2.16	-$576.07 million	$4.17	1.41

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

Insider & Institutional Ownership

97.9% of Chesapeake Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.0% of Obsidian Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 58.0% of Chesapeake Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Chesapeake Energy and Obsidian Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Chesapeake Energy	0	2	4	1	2.86
Obsidian Energy	0	0	0	0	0.00

Chesapeake Energy presently has a consensus price target of $102.00, indicating a potential upside of 2.58%. Given Chesapeake Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Chesapeake Energy is more favorable than Obsidian Energy.

Summary

Chesapeake Energy beats Obsidian Energy on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Chesapeake Energy

Expand Energy Corporation is an independent natural gas producer principally in the United States. Expand Energy Corporation, formerly known as Chesapeake Energy Corporation, is based in OKLAHOMA CITY.

About Obsidian Energy

Obsidian Energy Ltd. is an exploration and production company. The firm engages in exploring, developing, and holds interests in oil and natural gas properties and related production infrastructure in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin directly and through investments in securities of subsidiaries holding such interests. Its property portfolio includes Cardium, Viking, and Peace River. The company was founded on December 27, 1979 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.