PrimeEnergy (NASDAQ:PNRG) vs. Granite Ridge Resources (NYSE:GRNT) Financial Analysis

PrimeEnergy (NASDAQ:PNRG) and Granite Ridge Resources (NYSE:GRNT) are both small-cap energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation, risk and dividends.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for PrimeEnergy and Granite Ridge Resources, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PrimeEnergy	0	1	0	0	2.00
Granite Ridge Resources	0	2	0	0	2.00

Risk and Volatility

PrimeEnergy has a beta of -0.18, suggesting that its stock price is 118% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Granite Ridge Resources has a beta of 0.26, suggesting that its stock price is 74% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

31.6% of Granite Ridge Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 62.8% of PrimeEnergy shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 8.5% of Granite Ridge Resources shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares PrimeEnergy and Granite Ridge Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PrimeEnergy	12.69%	12.19%	7.53%
Granite Ridge Resources	5.41%	8.91%	5.01%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares PrimeEnergy and Granite Ridge Resources”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PrimeEnergy	$237.80 million	1.61	$55.40 million	$10.45	22.41
Granite Ridge Resources	$450.31 million	1.68	$24.35 million	$0.18	31.93

PrimeEnergy has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Granite Ridge Resources. PrimeEnergy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Granite Ridge Resources, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

PrimeEnergy beats Granite Ridge Resources on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PrimeEnergy

PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in acquisition, development, and production of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. The company owns leasehold, mineral, and royalty interests in producing and non-producing oil and gas properties; and operates approximately 534 active wells and owns non-operating interests and royalties in 952 additional wells. It also acquires producing oil and gas properties through joint ventures with industry partners; and provides contract services to third parties, including well-servicing support, site-preparation, and construction services for oil and gas drilling and reworking operations. The company was formerly known as PrimeEnergy Corporation and changed its name to PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation in December 2018. PrimeEnergy Resources Corporation was incorporated in 1973 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Granite Ridge Resources

Granite Ridge Resources, Inc. operates as a non-operated oil and gas exploration and production company. It owns a portfolio of wells and acreage across the Permian and other unconventional basins in the United States. Granite Ridge Resources, Inc. is based in Dallas, Texas.