Mach Natural Resources (NYSE:MNR – Get Free Report) and SM Energy (NYSE:SM – Get Free Report) are both mid-cap energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, profitability, risk and dividends.
Dividends
Mach Natural Resources pays an annual dividend of $2.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 19.9%. SM Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Mach Natural Resources pays out 332.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. SM Energy pays out 37.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Mach Natural Resources has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years and SM Energy has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
78.4% of Mach Natural Resources shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.6% of SM Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 87.8% of Mach Natural Resources shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.5% of SM Energy shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Analyst Ratings
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Mach Natural Resources | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2.75 |
| SM Energy | 0 | 6 | 9 | 0 | 2.60 |
Mach Natural Resources currently has a consensus target price of $17.50, indicating a potential upside of 36.37%. SM Energy has a consensus target price of $37.00, indicating a potential upside of 33.29%. Given Mach Natural Resources’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts plainly believe Mach Natural Resources is more favorable than SM Energy.
Profitability
This table compares Mach Natural Resources and SM Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Mach Natural Resources | 7.46% | 18.46% | 9.76% |
| SM Energy | 3.45% | 13.93% | 6.29% |
Risk and Volatility
Mach Natural Resources has a beta of -0.27, meaning that its share price is 127% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, SM Energy has a beta of 0.73, meaning that its share price is 27% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Mach Natural Resources and SM Energy”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Mach Natural Resources | $1.18 billion | 1.84 | $142.98 million | $0.77 | 16.67 |
| SM Energy | $3.15 billion | 2.11 | $648.00 million | $2.38 | 11.66 |
SM Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Mach Natural Resources. SM Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Mach Natural Resources, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
About Mach Natural Resources
Mach Natural Resources LP, an independent upstream oil and gas company, focuses on the acquisition, development, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids reserves in the Anadarko Basin region of Western Oklahoma, Southern Kansas, and the panhandle of Texas. It also owns a portfolio of midstream assets, as well as owns plants and water infrastructure. The company was incorporated in 2023 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
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.
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