Head-To-Head Survey: Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) versus Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK)

Occidental Petroleum (NYSE:OXY) and Comstock Resources (NYSE:CRK) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, dividends and earnings.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Occidental Petroleum and Comstock Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Occidental Petroleum	0	8	5	1	2.50
Comstock Resources	2	4	2	0	2.00

Occidental Petroleum presently has a consensus target price of $71.94, suggesting a potential upside of 10.56%. Comstock Resources has a consensus target price of $9.75, suggesting a potential downside of 5.71%. Given Occidental Petroleum’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Occidental Petroleum is more favorable than Comstock Resources.

Volatility and Risk

Occidental Petroleum has a beta of 1.64, meaning that its share price is 64% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Comstock Resources has a beta of 0.7, meaning that its share price is 30% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Occidental Petroleum and Comstock Resources’ gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Occidental Petroleum	$28.92 billion	1.99	$4.70 billion	$3.91	16.64
Comstock Resources	$1.57 billion	1.93	$211.12 million	$0.22	47.00

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

Institutional and Insider Ownership

88.7% of Occidental Petroleum shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 36.1% of Comstock Resources shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of Occidental Petroleum shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.5% of Comstock Resources shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Occidental Petroleum and Comstock Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Occidental Petroleum	16.24%	20.63%	6.00%
Comstock Resources	4.27%	1.25%	0.48%

Summary

Occidental Petroleum beats Comstock Resources on 13 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Occidental Petroleum

Occidental Petroleum Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and gas properties in the United States, the Middle East, and North Africa. It operates through three segments: Oil and Gas, Chemical, and Midstream and Marketing. The company's Oil and Gas segment explores for, develops, and produces oil and condensate, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and natural gas. Its Chemical segment manufactures and markets basic chemicals, including chlorine, caustic soda, chlorinated organics, potassium chemicals, ethylene dichloride, chlorinated isocyanurates, sodium silicates, and calcium chloride; and vinyls comprising vinyl chloride monomer, polyvinyl chloride, and ethylene. The Midstream and Marketing segment gathers, processes, transports, stores, purchases, and markets oil, condensate, NGLs, natural gas, carbon dioxide, and power. This segment also invests in entities. Occidental Petroleum Corporation was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Comstock Resources

Comstock Resources, Inc., an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of natural gas and oil properties in the United States. Its assets are located in the Haynesville and Bossier shales located in North Louisiana and East Texas. The company was incorporated in 1919 and is headquartered in Frisco, Texas.