Comparing VAALCO Energy (NYSE:EGY) & Chord Energy (NASDAQ:CHRD)

VAALCO Energy (NYSE:EGY) and Chord Energy (NASDAQ:CHRD) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares VAALCO Energy and Chord Energy’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
VAALCO Energy	$455.07 million	1.43	$60.35 million	$0.60	10.46
Chord Energy	$4.43 billion	1.41	$1.02 billion	$21.31	7.04

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

Dividends

VAALCO Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.25 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. Chord Energy pays an annual dividend of $5.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. VAALCO Energy pays out 41.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Chord Energy pays out 23.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

50.3% of VAALCO Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.8% of Chord Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.3% of VAALCO Energy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.7% of Chord Energy shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares VAALCO Energy and Chord Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
VAALCO Energy	17.82%	16.00%	8.95%
Chord Energy	22.67%	16.57%	12.03%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for VAALCO Energy and Chord Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
VAALCO Energy	0	0	1	0	3.00
Chord Energy	0	1	9	0	2.90

VAALCO Energy currently has a consensus target price of $8.00, indicating a potential upside of 27.49%. Chord Energy has a consensus target price of $206.00, indicating a potential upside of 37.27%. Given Chord Energy’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Chord Energy is more favorable than VAALCO Energy.

Risk and Volatility

VAALCO Energy has a beta of 1.19, suggesting that its stock price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Chord Energy has a beta of 1.01, suggesting that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Chord Energy beats VAALCO Energy on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About VAALCO Energy

VAALCO Energy, Inc., an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in Gabon, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, and Canada. The company holds 58.8% interest in the Etame production sharing contract related to the Etame Marin block covering an area of approximately 46,200 gross acres located offshore in the Republic of Gabon in West Africa. It also owns 100% interest in the Eastern Desert, which contains West Gharib, West Bakr and North West Gharib merged concessions covering as area of approximately 45,067 acres, as well as Western Desert, which contains the South Ghazalat concession covering as area of approximately 7,340 acres located in Egypt. In addition, the company production and working interests in Cardium light oil and Mannville liquids-rich gas assets covering as area of 47,400 gross acres located near the north of Calgary, Alberta; and an undeveloped block offshore Equatorial Guinea, West Africa. VAALCO Energy, Inc. was incorporated in 1985 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Chord Energy

Chord Energy Corporation operates as an independent exploration and production company in the United States. It acquires, explores, develops, and produces crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the Williston Basin. The company sells its products to refiners, marketers, and other purchasers that have access to nearby pipeline and rail facilities. The company was formerly known as Oasis Petroleum Inc. and changed its name to Chord Energy Corporation in July 2022. Chord Energy Corporation was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.