Vitesse Energy (NYSE:VTS) and Permian Resources (NYSE:PR) Critical Analysis

Vitesse Energy (NYSE:VTS) and Permian Resources (NYSE:PR) are both energy companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, risk, earnings, dividends, institutional ownership, profitability and valuation.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Vitesse Energy and Permian Resources”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vitesse Energy	$275.23 million	2.61	$25.28 million	($0.50)	-34.49
Permian Resources	$5.07 billion	3.18	$935.17 million	$0.86	22.35

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

Profitability

This table compares Vitesse Energy and Permian Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vitesse Energy	-7.15%	3.53%	2.43%
Permian Resources	12.79%	10.53%	6.71%

Volatility and Risk

Vitesse Energy has a beta of 0.62, indicating that its stock price is 38% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Permian Resources has a beta of 0.52, indicating that its stock price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

51.6% of Vitesse Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 91.8% of Permian Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 13.9% of Vitesse Energy shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 5.0% of Permian Resources shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Vitesse Energy pays an annual dividend of $1.75 per share and has a dividend yield of 10.1%. Permian Resources pays an annual dividend of $0.64 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Vitesse Energy pays out -350.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Permian Resources pays out 74.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Vitesse Energy has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years and Permian Resources has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Vitesse Energy is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Vitesse Energy and Permian Resources, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vitesse Energy	0	3	0	0	2.00
Permian Resources	0	5	13	3	2.90

Vitesse Energy currently has a consensus price target of $20.00, suggesting a potential upside of 15.97%. Permian Resources has a consensus price target of $22.69, suggesting a potential upside of 18.06%. Given Permian Resources’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Permian Resources is more favorable than Vitesse Energy.

Summary

Permian Resources beats Vitesse Energy on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Vitesse Energy

Vitesse Energy, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, development, and production of non-operated oil and natural gas properties in the United States. It owns and acquires non-operated working interest and royalty interest ownership in the Williston Basin properties located in North Dakota and Montana. The company also owns non-operated interests in the Central Rockies properties located in Colorado and Wyoming. Vitesse Energy, Inc. was founded in 2014 and is based in Centennial, Colorado.

About Permian Resources

Permian Resources Corporation, an independent oil and natural gas company, focuses on the development of crude oil and related liquids-rich natural gas reserves in the United States. The company’s assets primarily focus on the Delaware Basin, a sub-basin of the Permian Basin. Its properties consist of acreage blocks in West Texas, Eddy County, Lea County, and New Mexico. The company was formerly known as Centennial Resource Development, Inc. and changed its name to Permian Resources Corporation in September 2022. Permian Resources Corporation was incorporated in 2015 and is headquartered in Midland, Texas.