U.S. Energy (NASDAQ:USEG) versus EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) Critical Survey

EOG Resources (NYSE:EOG) and U.S. Energy (NASDAQ:USEG) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, dividends and profitability.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations for EOG Resources and U.S. Energy, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
EOG Resources	0	18	11	1	2.43
U.S. Energy	1	0	1	0	2.00

EOG Resources currently has a consensus price target of $138.52, indicating a potential downside of 6.11%. U.S. Energy has a consensus price target of $3.50, indicating a potential upside of 246.53%. Given U.S. Energy’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe U.S. Energy is more favorable than EOG Resources.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

89.9% of EOG Resources shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.0% of U.S. Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 0.1% of EOG Resources shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 61.0% of U.S. Energy shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares EOG Resources and U.S. Energy”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
EOG Resources	$22.63 billion	3.50	$4.98 billion	$9.11	16.19
U.S. Energy	$7.35 million	6.08	-$14.37 million	($0.45)	-2.24

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

Volatility & Risk

EOG Resources has a beta of 0.44, suggesting that its stock price is 56% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, U.S. Energy has a beta of 0.55, suggesting that its stock price is 45% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares EOG Resources and U.S. Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
EOG Resources	22.00%	18.67%	11.25%
U.S. Energy	-195.49%	-51.91%	-29.64%

Summary

EOG Resources beats U.S. Energy on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About EOG Resources

EOG Resources, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, explores for, develops, produces, and markets crude oil, natural gas liquids, and natural gas primarily in producing basins in the United States, the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and internationally. The company was formerly known as Enron Oil & Gas Company. EOG Resources, Inc. was incorporated in 1985 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About U.S. Energy

U.S. Energy Corp., an independent energy company, focuses on the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. It holds interests in various oil and gas properties located in the Rockies region, including Montana, Wyoming, and North Dakota; the Mid-Continent region comprising Oklahoma, Kansas, and North and East Texas; West Texas; South Texas; and the Gulf Coast regions. The company was incorporated in 1966 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.