W&T Offshore (NYSE:WTI – Get Free Report) and Energy Transfer (NYSE:ET – Get Free Report) are both energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, earnings and risk.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares W&T Offshore and Energy Transfer”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| W&T Offshore | $501.46 million | 1.09 | -$150.06 million | ($0.73) | -4.97 |
| Energy Transfer | $85.54 billion | 0.82 | $4.18 billion | $1.47 | 13.88 |
Insider and Institutional Ownership
42.9% of W&T Offshore shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 38.2% of Energy Transfer shares are held by institutional investors. 35.9% of W&T Offshore shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.3% of Energy Transfer shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Dividends
W&T Offshore pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. Energy Transfer pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.7%. W&T Offshore pays out -5.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Energy Transfer pays out 92.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Energy Transfer has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years. Energy Transfer is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings for W&T Offshore and Energy Transfer, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| W&T Offshore | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Energy Transfer | 0 | 3 | 12 | 2 | 2.94 |
W&T Offshore currently has a consensus price target of $4.25, suggesting a potential upside of 17.24%. Energy Transfer has a consensus price target of $24.50, suggesting a potential upside of 20.04%. Given Energy Transfer’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Energy Transfer is more favorable than W&T Offshore.
Profitability
This table compares W&T Offshore and Energy Transfer’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| W&T Offshore | -19.32% | N/A | -2.59% |
| Energy Transfer | 4.87% | 11.55% | 3.69% |
Risk and Volatility
W&T Offshore has a beta of 0.35, indicating that its share price is 65% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Energy Transfer has a beta of 0.6, indicating that its share price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Energy Transfer beats W&T Offshore on 14 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.
About W&T Offshore
W&T Offshore, Inc. engages in the production, exploration, development, and acquisition of oil and natural gas properties. It focuses its operations in the Gulf of Mexico. The company was founded by Tracy W. Krohn in 1983 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.
About Energy Transfer
Energy Transfer LP provides energy-related services. The company owns and operates natural gas transportation pipeline, and natural gas storage facilities in Texas and Oklahoma; and approximately 20,090 miles of interstate natural gas pipeline. It also sells natural gas to electric utilities, independent power plants, local distribution and other marketing companies, and industrial end-users. In addition, the company owns and operates natural gas gathering pipelines, processing plant, and treating and conditioning facilities in Texas, New Mexico, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, Montana, North Dakota, Wyoming, and Louisiana; natural gas gathering, oil pipeline, and oil stabilization facilities in South Texas; and transports and supplies water to natural gas producer in Pennsylvania. Further, it owns 5,700 miles of natural gas liquid (NGL) pipeline; NGL fractionation facilities; NGL storage facilities; and other NGL storage assets and terminal. Additionally, the company provides crude oil transportation, terminalling, acquisition, and marketing activities; owns and operates approximately 14,500 miles of crude oil trunk and gathering pipelines in the Southwest, Midcontinent, and Midwest United States; and sells and distributes gasoline, middle distillate, and motor fuels and other petroleum products. It also offers natural gas compression services; carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide removal services; and manages coal and natural resources properties, as well as sells standing timber, leases coal-related infrastructure facilities, collects oil and gas royalty, and generate electrical power. The company was formerly known as Energy Transfer Equity, L.P. and changed its name to Energy Transfer LP in October 2018. Energy Transfer LP was founded in 1996 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.
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