Stratex Oil & Gas (OTCMKTS:STTX) & SM Energy (NYSE:SM) Financial Contrast

Stratex Oil & Gas (OTCMKTS:STTX) and SM Energy (NYSE:SM) are both energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, dividends, profitability, risk and analyst recommendations.

Volatility and Risk

Stratex Oil & Gas has a beta of 2.23, indicating that its share price is 123% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SM Energy has a beta of 1.14, indicating that its share price is 14% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Stratex Oil & Gas and SM Energy”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Stratex Oil & Gas	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
SM Energy	$2.69 billion	0.90	$770.29 million	$6.34	3.35

SM Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Stratex Oil & Gas.

Profitability

This table compares Stratex Oil & Gas and SM Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Stratex Oil & Gas	N/A	N/A	N/A
SM Energy	22.03%	16.67%	8.44%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Stratex Oil & Gas and SM Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Stratex Oil & Gas	0	0	0	0	0.00
SM Energy	2	5	3	1	2.27

SM Energy has a consensus target price of $33.20, suggesting a potential upside of 56.38%. Given SM Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe SM Energy is more favorable than Stratex Oil & Gas.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

94.6% of SM Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.5% of SM Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

SM Energy beats Stratex Oil & Gas on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Stratex Oil & Gas

Stratex Oil & Gas Holdings, Inc., an independent energy company, focuses on the acquisition, exploitation, and development of crude oil in Kansas and Texas, as well as non-operated working interests in North Dakota, Montana, Utah, Colorado, and Kansas. The company is also involved in the sale of oil and gas. The company was formerly known as Poway Muffler and Brake, Inc. and changed its name to Stratex Oil & Gas Holdings, Inc. in May 2012. Stratex Oil & Gas Holdings, Inc. is based in Salt Lake City, Utah.

About SM Energy

SM Energy Company, an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of oil, gas, and natural gas liquids in the state of Texas. It has working interests in oil and gas producing wells in the Midland Basin and South Texas. The company was formerly known as St. Mary Land & Exploration Company and changed its name to SM Energy Company in May 2010. SM Energy Company was founded in 1908 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.