Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM – Get Free Report) and Zion Oil & Gas (OTCMKTS:ZNOG – Get Free Report) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, valuation and risk.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Viper Energy and Zion Oil & Gas”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Viper Energy | $980.75 million | 11.68 | $359.24 million | $3.46 | 11.48 |
| Zion Oil & Gas | N/A | N/A | -$7.34 million | ($1.77) | -0.10 |
Profitability
This table compares Viper Energy and Zion Oil & Gas’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Viper Energy | 37.84% | 3.92% | 3.28% |
| Zion Oil & Gas | N/A | -22.49% | -20.24% |
Risk & Volatility
Viper Energy has a beta of 1.04, meaning that its stock price is 4% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Zion Oil & Gas has a beta of 1.7, meaning that its stock price is 70% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
87.7% of Viper Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 7.9% of Zion Oil & Gas shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Viper Energy shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 2.7% of Zion Oil & Gas shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Viper Energy and Zion Oil & Gas, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Viper Energy | 0 | 0 | 16 | 0 | 3.00 |
| Zion Oil & Gas | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
Viper Energy presently has a consensus target price of $55.53, suggesting a potential upside of 39.85%. Given Viper Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Viper Energy is more favorable than Zion Oil & Gas.
Summary
Viper Energy beats Zion Oil & Gas on 11 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Viper Energy
Viper Energy, Inc. engages in the acquisition of oil and natural gas properties. It owns, acquires, and exploits oil and natural gas properties in North America. The company was founded on February 27, 2014 and is headquartered in Midland, TX.
About Zion Oil & Gas
Zion Oil & Gas, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an oil and gas exploration company in Israel. It holds a petroleum exploration license onshore Israel, the New Megiddo License 434 comprising an area of approximately 75,000 acres. The company was incorporated in 2000 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.
Receive News & Ratings for Viper Energy Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Viper Energy and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.
