Critical Survey: Crescent Energy (NYSE:CRGY) versus GE Vernova (NYSE:GEV)

Crescent Energy (NYSE:CRGY) and GE Vernova (NYSE:GEV) are both energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, analyst recommendations, profitability and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Crescent Energy and GE Vernova’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Crescent Energy	0.67%	13.35%	4.82%
GE Vernova	3.16%	13.23%	2.60%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings for Crescent Energy and GE Vernova, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Crescent Energy	2	3	8	1	2.57
GE Vernova	0	8	19	4	2.87

Crescent Energy currently has a consensus target price of $15.67, indicating a potential upside of 93.65%. GE Vernova has a consensus target price of $598.50, indicating a potential downside of 1.29%. Given Crescent Energy’s higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Crescent Energy is more favorable than GE Vernova.

Volatility and Risk

Crescent Energy has a beta of 1.89, indicating that its stock price is 89% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, GE Vernova has a beta of 1.72, indicating that its stock price is 72% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

52.1% of Crescent Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 13.2% of Crescent Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of GE Vernova shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Crescent Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.9%. GE Vernova pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. Crescent Energy pays out -266.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. GE Vernova pays out 24.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Crescent Energy has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Crescent Energy is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Crescent Energy and GE Vernova”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Crescent Energy	$3.47 billion	0.59	-$114.61 million	($0.18)	-44.94
GE Vernova	$34.94 billion	4.72	$1.55 billion	$4.15	146.10

GE Vernova has higher revenue and earnings than Crescent Energy. Crescent Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than GE Vernova, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

About Crescent Energy

Crescent Energy Company acquires, develops, and produces crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids (NGLs) reserves. Its portfolio of assets comprises mid-cycle unconventional and conventional assets in the Eagle Ford and Uinta Basins. It also owns and operates various midstream assets, which provide services to customers. The company is based in Houston, Texas.

About GE Vernova

GE Vernova LLC, an energy business company, generates electricity. It operates under three segments: Power, Wind, and Electrification. The Power segments generates and sells electricity through hydro, gas, nuclear, and steam power. Wind segment engages in the manufacturing and sale of wind turbine blades; and Electrification segment provides grid solutions, power conversion, solar, and storage solutions. The company was incorporated in 2023 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts.