Analyzing Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) and Prairie Operating (OTCMKTS:CRKR)

Prairie Operating (OTCMKTS:CRKR) and Walker & Dunlop (NYSE:WD) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

49.5% of Prairie Operating shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 81.0% of Walker & Dunlop shares are held by institutional investors. 24.6% of Prairie Operating shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of Walker & Dunlop shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Prairie Operating and Walker & Dunlop, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Prairie Operating	0	0	0	0	0.00
Walker & Dunlop	0	2	0	1	2.67

Walker & Dunlop has a consensus price target of $111.00, suggesting a potential upside of 1.83%. Given Walker & Dunlop’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Walker & Dunlop is more favorable than Prairie Operating.

Profitability

This table compares Prairie Operating and Walker & Dunlop’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Prairie Operating	N/A	N/A	-286.57%
Walker & Dunlop	8.91%	9.81%	4.11%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Prairie Operating and Walker & Dunlop”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Prairie Operating	$520,000.00	0.00	-$13.42 million	N/A	N/A
Walker & Dunlop	$1.05 billion	3.49	$107.36 million	$2.80	38.93

Walker & Dunlop has higher revenue and earnings than Prairie Operating.

Volatility & Risk

Prairie Operating has a beta of 1.59, meaning that its share price is 59% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Walker & Dunlop has a beta of 1.55, meaning that its share price is 55% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Walker & Dunlop beats Prairie Operating on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Prairie Operating

Prairie Operating Co. engages in developing energy to meet growing demand, while protecting the environment. The company was formerly known as Creek Road Miners, Inc. and changed its name to Prairie Operating Co. in May 2023. Prairie Operating Co. is based in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.

About Walker & Dunlop

Walker & Dunlop, Inc., through its subsidiaries, originates, sells, and services a range of multifamily and other commercial real estate financing products and services for owners and developers of real estate in the United States. It operates through three segments: Capital Markets, Servicing & Asset Management, and Corporate. The company offers first mortgage, second trust, supplemental, construction, mezzanine, preferred equity, and small-balance loans. It also provides finance for multifamily, manufactured housing communities, student housing, affordable housing, and senior housing properties under the Fannie Mae's DUS program; and construction and permanent loans to developers and owners of multifamily housing, affordable housing, senior housing, and healthcare facilities. In addition, the company acts as a debt broker to work with life insurance companies, banks, and other institutional lenders to find debt and/or equity solution for the borrowers' needs; and offers property sales brokerage services to owners and developers of multifamily properties, and commercial real estate and multifamily property appraisals for various investors. Further, it provides multifamily appraisal and valuation services; and real estate-related investment banking and advisory services, including housing market research. Additionally, the company offers servicing and asset-managing the portfolio of loans; originates loans through its principal lending and investing activities; and manages third-party capital invested in tax credit equity funds focused on the LIHTC sector and other commercial real estate sectors. Walker & Dunlop, Inc. was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Bethesda, Maryland.