Reviewing Veren (NYSE:VRN) and PHX Minerals (NYSE:PHX)

PHX Minerals (NYSE:PHX) and Veren (NYSE:VRN) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares PHX Minerals and Veren”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
PHX Minerals	$38.33 million	3.90	$13.92 million	$0.13	30.69
Veren	$4.30 billion	0.74	$422.48 million	$1.40	3.71

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

Profitability

This table compares PHX Minerals and Veren’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
PHX Minerals	12.33%	4.16%	3.12%
Veren	26.93%	12.23%	6.80%

Dividends

PHX Minerals pays an annual dividend of $0.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. Veren pays an annual dividend of $0.34 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.6%. PHX Minerals pays out 123.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Veren pays out 24.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Veren is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

38.2% of PHX Minerals shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 49.4% of Veren shares are held by institutional investors. 6.4% of PHX Minerals shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.3% of Veren shares are held by 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 Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for PHX Minerals and Veren, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
PHX Minerals	0	0	2	0	3.00
Veren	0	0	2	1	3.33

PHX Minerals presently has a consensus price target of $4.90, indicating a potential upside of 22.81%. Veren has a consensus price target of $12.67, indicating a potential upside of 144.06%. Given Veren’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Veren is more favorable than PHX Minerals.

Volatility & Risk

PHX Minerals has a beta of 0.58, meaning that its stock price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Veren has a beta of 2.13, meaning that its stock price is 113% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Veren beats PHX Minerals on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About PHX Minerals

PHX Minerals Inc. operates as a natural gas and oil mineral company in the United States. The company produces and sells natural gas, crude oil, and natural gas liquids. Its principal properties are located in Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana, North Dakota, and Arkansas. The company sells its products to various purchasers, including pipeline and marketing companies. The company was formerly known as Panhandle Oil and Gas Inc. and changed its name to PHX Minerals Inc. in October 2020. PHX Minerals Inc. was founded in 1926 and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.

About Veren

Veren Inc. explores, develops, and produces oil and gas properties in Canada and the United States. The company focuses on crude oil, tight oil, natural gas liquids, shale gas, and natural gas reserves. Its properties are located in the provinces of Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia, and Manitoba; and the states of North Dakota. The company was formerly known as Crescent Point Energy Corp. and changed its name to Veren Inc. in May 2024. Veren Inc. was incorporated in 1994 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.