Woodside Energy Group (NYSE:WDS) vs. Meren Energy (OTCMKTS:AOIFF) Financial Review

Woodside Energy Group (NYSE:WDS) and Meren Energy (OTCMKTS:AOIFF) are both energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, risk, dividends, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

3.2% of Woodside Energy Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Woodside Energy Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of Meren Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

Woodside Energy Group has a beta of 0.38, suggesting that its stock price is 62% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Meren Energy has a beta of 0.53, suggesting that its stock price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Woodside Energy Group pays an annual dividend of $1.02 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.6%. Meren Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 8.5%. Meren Energy pays out -26.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Woodside Energy Group and Meren Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Woodside Energy Group	0	2	0	1	2.67
Meren Energy	0	0	0	0	0.00

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Woodside Energy Group and Meren Energy”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Woodside Energy Group	$12.98 billion	3.27	$2.72 billion	N/A	N/A
Meren Energy	N/A	N/A	-$279.10 million	($0.52)	-3.17

Woodside Energy Group has higher revenue and earnings than Meren Energy.

Profitability

This table compares Woodside Energy Group and Meren Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Woodside Energy Group	N/A	N/A	N/A
Meren Energy	N/A	3.52%	1.68%

Summary

Meren Energy beats Woodside Energy Group on 6 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Woodside Energy Group

Woodside Energy Group Ltd engages in the exploration, evaluation, development, production, and marketing of hydrocarbons in the Asia Pacific, Africa, the Americas, and the Europe. The company produces liquefied natural gas, pipeline gas, crude oil and condensate, and natural gas liquids. It holds interests in the Pluto LNG, North West Shelf, Wheatstone and Julimar-Brunello, Bass Strait, Ngujima-Yin FPSO, Okha FPSO, Pyrenees FPSO, Macedon, Shenzi, Mad dog, Greater Angostura, as well as Scarborough, Sangomar, Trion, Calypso, Browse, Liard, Atlantis, Woodside Solar opportunity, and Sunrise and Troubadour. The company involves in development of new energy products and carbon services. The company was formerly known as Woodside Petroleum Ltd and changed its name to Woodside Energy Group Ltd in May 2022. Woodside Energy Group Ltd was founded in 1954 and is headquartered in Perth, Australia.

About Meren Energy

Africa Oil Corp., together with its subsidiaries, operates as an oil and gas exploration and production company in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa. The company holds interests in producing and development assets in deep-water Nigeria, and development assets in Kenya. It also has a portfolio of exploration and appraisal assets in Namibia, Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenya, as well as Guyana and Senegal Guinea Bissau Joint Development Zone. The company was formerly known as Canmex Minerals Corporation and changed its name to Africa Oil Corp. in August 2007. Africa Oil Corp. was incorporated in 1983 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.