PostRock Energy (OTCMKTS:PSTRQ) versus Prairie Operating (NASDAQ:PROP) Critical Comparison

PostRock Energy (OTCMKTS:PSTRQ) and Prairie Operating (NASDAQ:PROP) are both energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

34.3% of Prairie Operating shares are held by institutional investors. 79.2% of PostRock Energy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 15.4% of Prairie Operating 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.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares PostRock Energy and Prairie Operating”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PostRock Energy	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A
Prairie Operating	$7.94 million	12.79	-$40.91 million	($3.00)	-0.67

PostRock Energy has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Prairie Operating.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for PostRock Energy and Prairie Operating, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PostRock Energy	0	0	0	0	0.00
Prairie Operating	1	2	3	0	2.33

Prairie Operating has a consensus target price of $8.50, suggesting a potential upside of 320.79%. Given Prairie Operating’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Prairie Operating is more favorable than PostRock Energy.

Volatility & Risk

PostRock Energy has a beta of -1.89, meaning that its share price is 289% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Prairie Operating has a beta of 2.12, meaning that its share price is 112% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares PostRock Energy and Prairie Operating’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PostRock Energy	N/A	N/A	N/A
Prairie Operating	N/A	21.04%	2.69%

Summary

Prairie Operating beats PostRock Energy on 8 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PostRock Energy

PostRock Energy Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, production, and gathering of crude oil and natural gas. It focuses on the Cherokee Basin project in southeastern Kansas, northeastern Oklahoma, and central Oklahoma. The firm also owns and operates minor oil and gas producing properties in the Appalachian Basin. The company was founded in July 2009 and is headquartered in Oklahoma City, OK.

About Prairie Operating

Prairie Operating Co., an independent energy company, engages in the development, exploration, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids in the United States. The company holds assets in the Denver-Julesburg Basin in Colorado; and the Niobrara and Codell formations. Prairie Operating Co. is based in Houston Texas.