Critical Contrast: Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) & Blue Dolphin Energy (OTCMKTS:BDCO)

Antero Resources (NYSE:AR) and Blue Dolphin Energy (OTCMKTS:BDCO) are both energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, valuation and profitability.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

83.0% of Antero Resources shares are owned by institutional investors. 6.3% of Antero Resources shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 88.3% of Blue Dolphin Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations for Antero Resources and Blue Dolphin Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Antero Resources	0	7	8	1	2.63
Blue Dolphin Energy	0	0	0	0	0.00

Antero Resources currently has a consensus target price of $44.06, indicating a potential upside of 33.10%. Given Antero Resources’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Antero Resources is more favorable than Blue Dolphin Energy.

Risk and Volatility

Antero Resources has a beta of 0.63, indicating that its share price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Blue Dolphin Energy has a beta of 0.47, indicating that its share price is 53% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Antero Resources and Blue Dolphin Energy”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Antero Resources	$4.73 billion	2.16	$57.23 million	$1.57	21.09
Blue Dolphin Energy	$317.52 million	0.06	-$8.64 million	($0.57)	-2.23

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

Profitability

This table compares Antero Resources and Blue Dolphin Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Antero Resources	10.13%	6.48%	3.65%
Blue Dolphin Energy	-2.82%	-24.22%	-7.98%

Summary

Antero Resources beats Blue Dolphin Energy on 14 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Antero Resources

Antero Resources Corporation, an independent oil and natural gas company, engages in the development, production, exploration, and acquisition of natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), and oil properties in the United States. It operates in three segments: Exploration and Development; Marketing; and Equity Method Investment in Antero Midstream. As of December 31, 2023, the company had approximately 515,000 net acres in the Appalachian Basin; and approximately 172,000 net acres in the Upper Devonian Shale. Its gathering and compression systems also comprise 631 miles of gas gathering pipelines in the Appalachian Basin. The company was formerly known as Antero Resources Appalachian Corporation and changed its name to Antero Resources Corporation in June 2013. Antero Resources Corporation was incorporated in 2002 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

About Blue Dolphin Energy

Blue Dolphin Energy Company, an independent downstream energy company, engages in the refining and marketing of petroleum products in the United States. It operates through two segments, Refinery Operations, and Tolling and Terminaling. The company produces finished products, including jet fuel, as well as various intermediate products, such as naphtha, heavy oil mud blendstock, and atmospheric gas oil; and conducts tolling and terminaling services at the Nixon facility. It also provides storage tank rentals and ancillary services. The company was incorporated in 1986 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas. Blue Dolphin Energy Company is a subsidiary of Lazarus Energy Holdings, LLC.