Reviewing Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) & Mesa Royalty Trust (NYSE:MTR)

Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) and Mesa Royalty Trust (NYSE:MTR) are both energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, valuation, dividends and risk.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Equinor ASA and Mesa Royalty Trust”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Equinor ASA	$106.46 billion	1.10	$5.04 billion	$3.67	13.31
Mesa Royalty Trust	$600,000.00	6.35	$510,000.00	$0.16	12.81

Equinor ASA has higher revenue and earnings than Mesa Royalty Trust. Mesa Royalty Trust is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equinor ASA, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

5.5% of Equinor ASA shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 12.7% of Mesa Royalty Trust shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Equinor ASA shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Equinor ASA and Mesa Royalty Trust, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Equinor ASA	3	11	3	2	2.21
Mesa Royalty Trust	1	0	0	0	1.00

Equinor ASA currently has a consensus price target of $43.47, suggesting a potential downside of 11.04%. Given Equinor ASA’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Equinor ASA is more favorable than Mesa Royalty Trust.

Profitability

This table compares Equinor ASA and Mesa Royalty Trust’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Equinor ASA	7.92%	23.60%	7.21%
Mesa Royalty Trust	60.59%	9.17%	8.82%

Risk and Volatility

Equinor ASA has a beta of 0.13, suggesting that its stock price is 87% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Mesa Royalty Trust has a beta of 0.41, suggesting that its stock price is 59% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Equinor ASA beats Mesa Royalty Trust on 10 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Equinor ASA

Equinor ASA, an energy company, engages in the exploration, production, transportation, refining, and marketing of petroleum and other forms of energy in Norway and internationally. It operates through Exploration & Production Norway; Exploration & Production International; Exploration & Production USA; Marketing, Midstream & Processing; Renewables; and Other segments. The company also transports, processes, manufactures, markets, and trades in oil and gas commodities, such as crude and condensate products, gas liquids, natural gas, and liquefied natural gas; trades in power and emissions; operates refineries, terminals and processing, and power plants; and develops low carbon solutions for oil and gas. In addition, it develops carbon capture and storage projects; provides transportation solutions, including pipelines, shipping, trucking, and rail; and develops and explores for renewable energy, such as offshore wind, green hydrogen, and solar power. The company was formerly known as Statoil ASA and changed its name to Equinor ASA in May 2018. Equinor ASA was incorporated in 1972 and is headquartered in Stavanger, Norway.

About Mesa Royalty Trust

Mesa Royalty Trust owns overriding royalty interests in various oil and gas producing properties in the United States. It holds interests in properties located in the Hugoton field of Kansas; and the San Juan Basin field of Northwestern New Mexico and Southwestern Colorado. The company was founded in 1979 and is based in Houston, Texas.