Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) & SFL (NYSE:SFL) Head-To-Head Contrast

SFL (NYSE:SFL) and Matador Resources (NYSE:MTDR) are both energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, dividends, valuation and analyst recommendations.

Dividends

SFL pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.1%. Matador Resources pays an annual dividend of $1.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. SFL pays out 183.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Matador Resources pays out 25.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. SFL has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years and Matador Resources has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares SFL and Matador Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SFL	8.76%	3.41%	0.92%
Matador Resources	19.85%	13.18%	6.46%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

28.6% of SFL shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.0% of Matador Resources shares are owned by institutional investors. 5.9% of Matador Resources shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Volatility and Risk

SFL has a beta of 0.43, meaning that its stock price is 57% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Matador Resources has a beta of 0.98, meaning that its stock price is 2% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares SFL and Matador Resources”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SFL	$733.04 million	2.43	-$26.43 million	$0.48	25.71
Matador Resources	$3.70 billion	1.92	$759.22 million	$5.83	9.86

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for SFL and Matador Resources, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SFL	0	1	2	0	2.67
Matador Resources	0	5	12	1	2.78

SFL presently has a consensus target price of $14.00, suggesting a potential upside of 13.43%. Matador Resources has a consensus target price of $66.81, suggesting a potential upside of 16.26%. Given Matador Resources’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Matador Resources is more favorable than SFL.

Summary

Matador Resources beats SFL on 15 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SFL

SFL Corporation Ltd., a maritime and offshore asset owning and chartering company, engages in the ownership, operation, and chartering out of vessels and offshore related assets on medium and long-term charters. The company operates in various sectors of the maritime, and shipping and offshore industries, including oil transportation, dry bulk shipments, chemical transportation, oil products transportation, container transportation, car transportation, and drilling rigs. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned seven crude oil carriers, six oil product tankers, 15 dry bulk carriers, 32 container vessels, one jack-up drilling rig, one ultra-deepwater drilling rig, and five car carriers. It primarily operates in Bermuda, Canada, Cyprus, Liberia, Namibia, Norway, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the Marshall Islands. The company was formerly known as Ship Finance International Limited and changed its name to SFL Corporation Ltd. in September 2019. SFL Corporation Ltd. was founded in 2003 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.

About Matador Resources

Matador Resources Company, an independent energy company, engages in the exploration, development, production, and acquisition of oil and natural gas resources in the United States. It operates through two segments, Exploration and Production; and Midstream. The company primarily holds interests in the Wolfcamp and Bone Spring plays in the Delaware Basin in Southeast New Mexico and West Texas. It also operates the Eagle Ford shale play in South Texas; and the Haynesville shale and Cotton Valley plays in Northwest Louisiana. In addition, the company conducts midstream operations in support of its exploration, development, and production operations. Further, it provides natural gas processing and oil transportation services; and oil, natural gas, and produced water gathering services, as well as produced water disposal services to third parties. The company sells natural gas to unaffiliated independent marketing companies and unaffiliated midstream companies. The company was formerly known as Matador Holdco, Inc. and changed its name to Matador Resources Company in August 2011. Matador Resources Company was founded in 2003 and is headquartered in Dallas, Texas.