Head-To-Head Comparison: Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) & Extraction Oil & Gas (OTCMKTS:XOGAQ)

Extraction Oil & Gas (OTCMKTS:XOGAQ) and Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) are both energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, dividends, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Extraction Oil & Gas and Ecopetrol”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Extraction Oil & Gas	$906.64 million	0.01	-$1.39 billion	($0.46)	-0.13
Ecopetrol	$32.80 billion	0.61	$15.23 billion	$1.52	6.39

Ecopetrol has higher revenue and earnings than Extraction Oil & Gas. Extraction Oil & Gas is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ecopetrol, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

38.6% of Extraction Oil & Gas shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.0% of Extraction Oil & Gas shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Extraction Oil & Gas and Ecopetrol, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Extraction Oil & Gas	0	0	0	0	0.00
Ecopetrol	0	2	1	0	2.33

Ecopetrol has a consensus price target of $11.00, suggesting a potential upside of 13.23%. Given Ecopetrol’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Ecopetrol is more favorable than Extraction Oil & Gas.

Profitability

This table compares Extraction Oil & Gas and Ecopetrol’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Extraction Oil & Gas	-223.86%	-56.20%	-11.52%
Ecopetrol	9.74%	5.64%	2.00%

Volatility & Risk

Extraction Oil & Gas has a beta of 2.1, indicating that its stock price is 110% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ecopetrol has a beta of 0.82, indicating that its stock price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Ecopetrol beats Extraction Oil & Gas on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Extraction Oil & Gas

Extraction Oil & Gas, Inc., an independent oil and gas company, focuses on the acquisition, development, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquid reserves in the Rocky Mountain region, primarily in the Wattenberg Field of the Denver-Julesburg (DJ) Basin of Colorado. The company also engages in the construction and support of midstream assets to gather, process, and produce crude oil and gas. As of December 31, 2019, it had approximately 169,900 net acres of contiguous acreage blocks in the productive areas of the DJ Basin; held approximately 125,500 net acres outside of the Core DJ Basin; had estimated proved reserves of approximately 254.1 MMBoe; and had 1,509 gross producing wells. The company was founded in 2012 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado. On June 14, 2020, Extraction Oil & Gas, Inc., along with its affiliates, filed a voluntary petition for reorganization under Chapter 11 in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware.

About Ecopetrol

Ecopetrol S.A. operates as an integrated energy company. The company operates through four segments: Exploration and Production; Transport and Logistics; Refining, Petrochemical and Biofuels; and Electric Power Transmission and Toll Roads Concessions. It engages in the exploration and production of oil and gas; transportation of crude oil, motor fuels, fuel oil, and other refined products, including diesel, jet, and biofuels; processing and refining crude oil; distribution of natural gas and LPG; sale of refined and petrochemical products; supplying of electric power transmission services; design, development, construction, operation, and maintenance of road and energy infrastructure projects; and supplying of information technology and telecommunications services. As of December 31, 2022, the company had approximately 9,127 kilometers of crude oil and multi-purpose pipelines. It also produces and commercializes polypropylene resins and compounds, and masterbatches; and offers industrial service sales to customers and specialized management services. It has operations in Colombia, the United States, Asia, Central America and the Caribbean, Europe, and South America. The company was formerly known as Empresa Colombiana de Petróleos and changed its name to Ecopetrol S.A. in June 2003. Ecopetrol S.A. was incorporated in 1948 and is headquartered in Bogotá, Colombia.