Whiting USA Trust II (OTCMKTS:WHZT) versus Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) Critical Analysis

Whiting USA Trust II (OTCMKTS:WHZT) and Cenovus Energy (NYSE:CVE) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation and dividends.

Volatility & Risk

Whiting USA Trust II has a beta of 1.54, suggesting that its share price is 54% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Cenovus Energy has a beta of 2.04, suggesting that its share price is 104% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Whiting USA Trust II pays an annual dividend of $0.65 per share and has a dividend yield of 405.2%. Cenovus Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.53 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Cenovus Energy pays out 29.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Profitability

This table compares Whiting USA Trust II and Cenovus Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Whiting USA Trust II	N/A	1,607.92%	588.52%
Cenovus Energy	8.56%	16.61%	8.73%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Whiting USA Trust II and Cenovus Energy”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Whiting USA Trust II	$30.93 million	0.10	$270,000.00	N/A	N/A
Cenovus Energy	$59.64 billion	0.53	$3.04 billion	$1.80	9.41

Cenovus Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Whiting USA Trust II.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

51.2% of Cenovus Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 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 Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Whiting USA Trust II and Cenovus Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Whiting USA Trust II	0	0	0	0	N/A
Cenovus Energy	0	1	5	0	2.83

Cenovus Energy has a consensus target price of $30.75, indicating a potential upside of 81.63%. Given Cenovus Energy’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Cenovus Energy is more favorable than Whiting USA Trust II.

Summary

Cenovus Energy beats Whiting USA Trust II on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Whiting USA Trust II

Whiting USA Trust II is a statutory trust. The company was founded on December 5, 2011 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.

About Cenovus Energy

Cenovus Energy Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, produces, refines, transports, and markets crude oil, natural gas, and refined petroleum products in Canada and internationally. The company operates through Oil Sands, Conventional, Offshore, Canadian Refining, and U.S. Refining segments. The Oil Sands segment develops and produces bitumen and heavy oil in northern Alberta and Saskatchewan. This segment assets include Foster Creek, Christina Lake, and Sunrise projects, as well as Lloydminster thermal and conventional heavy oil assets. The Conventional segment holds natural gas liquids and natural gas assets primarily located in Elmworth-Wapiti, Kaybob-Edson, Clearwater, and Rainbow Lake operating in Alberta and British Columbia, as well as interests in various natural gas processing facilities. The offshore segment engages in offshore operation, exploration, and development activities in China and the East Coast of Canada. The Canadian Refining segment owns and operates Lloydminster upgrading and asphalt refining complex, which converts heavy oil and bitumen into synthetic crude oil, diesel, asphalt, and other ancillary products, as well as Bruderheim crude-by-rail terminal and ethanol plants. The U.S. Refining segment refines crude oil to produce gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, asphalt, and other products. Cenovus Energy Inc. is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.