Reviewing Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) and Delek US (NYSE:DK)

Par Pacific (NYSE:PARR) and Delek US (NYSE:DK) are both small-cap energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, earnings and valuation.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Par Pacific and Delek US, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Par Pacific	0	5	4	0	2.44
Delek US	4	7	2	0	1.85

Par Pacific presently has a consensus price target of $26.68, suggesting a potential downside of 16.76%. Delek US has a consensus price target of $20.60, suggesting a potential downside of 11.68%. Given Delek US’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Delek US is more favorable than Par Pacific.

Volatility & Risk

Par Pacific has a beta of 1.73, indicating that its stock price is 73% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Delek US has a beta of 0.98, indicating that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Par Pacific and Delek US’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Par Pacific	-0.77%	-5.87%	-1.84%
Delek US	-6.10%	-63.88%	-6.64%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Par Pacific and Delek US”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Par Pacific	$7.74 billion	0.21	-$33.32 million	($1.13)	-28.36
Delek US	$11.85 billion	0.12	-$560.40 million	($11.11)	-2.10

Par Pacific has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Delek US. Par Pacific is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Delek US, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

92.2% of Par Pacific shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.0% of Delek US shares are held by institutional investors. 4.4% of Par Pacific shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.9% of Delek US shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Par Pacific beats Delek US on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Par Pacific

Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. owns and operates energy and infrastructure businesses. The company operates through Refining, Retail, and Logistics segments. The Refining segment owns and operates refineries that produce gasoline, distillate, asphalt, and other products primarily for consumption in Kapolei, Hawaii, Newcastle, Wyoming, Tacoma, Washington, and Billings, Montana. The Retail segment operates fuel retail outlets, which sell merchandise, such as soft drinks, prepared foods, and other sundries in Hawaii under the Hele, 76, and nomnom brands; and gasoline, diesel, and retail merchandise in Washington and Idaho. The Logistics segment owns and operates terminals, pipelines, single point mooring, marine vessels, storage facilities, loading and truck racks, and rail facilities to distribute ethanol, petroleum, and refined products throughout Hawaii, the United States West Coast, Washington, the Dakotas, and Wyoming; and a jet fuel storage facility and pipeline that serves Ellsworth Air Force Base in South Dakota. It also holds interest in refined products pipeline. In addition, the company owns and operates a marine terminal, a unit train-capable rail loading terminal; a truck rack, and a proprietary pipeline that serves Joint Base Lewis McChord. The company was formerly known as Par Petroleum Corporation and changed its name to Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. in October 2015. Par Pacific Holdings, Inc. was incorporated in 1984 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Delek US

Delek US Holdings, Inc. engages in the integrated downstream energy business in the United States. The company operates through Refining, Logistics, and Retail segments. The Refining segment processes crude oil and other feedstock for the manufacture of various grades of gasoline, diesel fuel, aviation fuel, asphalt, and other petroleum-based products that are distributed through owned and third-party product terminal. It owns and operates refineries located in Tyler, Texas; El Dorado, Arkansas; Big Spring, Texas; and Krotz Springs, Louisiana, as well as biodiesel facilities in Crossett, Arkansas, Cleburne, Texas, and New Albany, Mississippi. The Logistics segment gathers, transports, and stores crude oil, intermediate, and refined products; and markets, distributes, transports, and stores refined products, as well as disposes and recycles water for third parties. It owns or leases crude oil transportation pipelines, refined product pipelines, crude oil gathering systems, and associated crude oil storage tanks; and owns and operates light product distribution terminals, as well as markets light products using third-party terminals. The Retail segment owns and leases convenience store sites located primarily in West Texas and New Mexico. Its convenience stores offer various grades of gasoline and diesel under the DK or Alon brand; and food products and service, tobacco products, non-alcoholic and alcoholic beverages, and general merchandise, as well as money orders to the public primarily under the 7-Eleven and DK or Alon brand names. It serves oil companies, independent refiners and marketers, jobbers, distributors, utility and transportation companies, government, and independent retail fuel operators. Delek US Holdings, Inc. was founded in 2001 and is headquartered in Brentwood, Tennessee.