Comparing Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) and Chevron (NYSE:CVX)

Chevron (NYSE:CVX) and Golar LNG (NASDAQ:GLNG) are both energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Risk & Volatility

Chevron has a beta of 0.9, meaning that its share price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Golar LNG has a beta of 0.42, meaning that its share price is 58% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

72.4% of Chevron shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.2% of Golar LNG shares are held by institutional investors. 0.2% of Chevron shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.0% of Golar LNG shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Chevron pays an annual dividend of $6.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.4%. Golar LNG pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.5%. Chevron pays out 88.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Golar LNG pays out -1,428.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Chevron has raised its dividend for 38 consecutive years and Golar LNG has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Chevron is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Profitability

This table compares Chevron and Golar LNG’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Chevron	7.02%	9.90%	5.87%
Golar LNG	-2.83%	6.36%	3.44%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for Chevron and Golar LNG, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Chevron	3	8	11	0	2.36
Golar LNG	0	2	4	2	3.00

Chevron currently has a consensus target price of $165.05, indicating a potential upside of 6.22%. Golar LNG has a consensus target price of $50.38, indicating a potential upside of 24.66%. Given Golar LNG’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Golar LNG is more favorable than Chevron.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Chevron and Golar LNG”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Chevron	$202.79 billion	1.32	$17.66 billion	$7.77	20.00
Golar LNG	$260.37 million	16.22	$50.84 million	($0.07)	-577.29

Chevron has higher revenue and earnings than Golar LNG. Golar LNG is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Chevron, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Chevron beats Golar LNG on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Chevron

Chevron Corporation, through its subsidiaries, engages in the integrated energy and chemicals operations in the United States and internationally. The company operates in two segments, Upstream and Downstream. The Upstream segment is involved in the exploration, development, production, and transportation of crude oil and natural gas; processing, liquefaction, transportation, and regasification of liquefied natural gas; transportation of crude oil through pipelines; transportation, storage, and marketing of natural gas; and carbon capture and storage, as well as a gas-to-liquids plant. The Downstream segment refines crude oil into petroleum products; markets crude oil, refined products, and lubricants; manufactures and markets renewable fuels, commodity petrochemicals, plastics for industrial uses, and fuel and lubricant additives; and transports crude oil and refined products by pipeline, marine vessel, motor equipment, and rail car. The company was formerly known as ChevronTexaco Corporation and changed its name to Chevron Corporation in 2005. Chevron Corporation was founded in 1879 and is headquartered in San Ramon, California.

About Golar LNG

Golar LNG Limited designs, converts, owns, and operates marine infrastructure for the liquefaction of natural gas. The company operates through three segments: FLNG, Corporate and Other, and Shipping. It engages in the regasification, storage, and offloading of liquefied natural gas (LNG); operation of floating liquefaction natural gas (FLNG) vessels or projects; transportation of LNG carriers; and vessel management activities. Golar LNG Limited was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.