Head to Head Contrast: Sable Offshore (NYSE:SOC) & ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP)

ConocoPhillips (NYSE:COP) and Sable Offshore (NYSE:SOC) are both energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation and risk.

Risk and Volatility

ConocoPhillips has a beta of 0.69, suggesting that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sable Offshore has a beta of 0.6, suggesting that its stock price is 40% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares ConocoPhillips and Sable Offshore’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
ConocoPhillips	15.26%	14.60%	7.68%
Sable Offshore	N/A	-88.48%	-17.69%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares ConocoPhillips and Sable Offshore”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
ConocoPhillips	$56.95 billion	2.06	$9.25 billion	$7.45	12.59
Sable Offshore	N/A	N/A	-$629.07 million	N/A	N/A

ConocoPhillips has higher revenue and earnings than Sable Offshore.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for ConocoPhillips and Sable Offshore, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
ConocoPhillips	0	4	16	0	2.80
Sable Offshore	1	0	6	0	2.71

ConocoPhillips presently has a consensus price target of $120.62, suggesting a potential upside of 28.58%. Sable Offshore has a consensus price target of $30.00, suggesting a potential upside of 22.65%. Given ConocoPhillips’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe ConocoPhillips is more favorable than Sable Offshore.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

82.4% of ConocoPhillips shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 26.2% of Sable Offshore shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.2% of ConocoPhillips shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 36.4% of Sable Offshore shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

ConocoPhillips beats Sable Offshore on 10 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About ConocoPhillips

ConocoPhillips explores for, produces, transports, and markets crude oil, bitumen, natural gas, liquefied natural gas (LNG), and natural gas liquids in the United States, Canada, China, Libya, Malaysia, Norway, the United Kingdom, and internationally. The company's portfolio includes unconventional plays in North America; conventional assets in North America, Europe, Asia, and Australia; global LNG developments; oil sands assets in Canada; and an inventory of global exploration prospects. ConocoPhillips was founded in 1917 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

About Sable Offshore

Sable Offshore Corp. engages in the oil and gas exploration and development activities in the United States. The company operates through three platforms located in federal waters offshore California. It owns and operates 16 federal leases across approximately 76,000 acres and subsea pipelines, which transport crude oil, natural gas, and produced water from the platforms to the onshore processing facilities. The company was formerly known as Flame Acquisition Corp. and changed its name to Sable Offshore Corp. in February 2024. Sable Offshore Corp. was incorporated in 2020 and is based in Houston, Texas.