Analyzing Vermilion Energy (NYSE:VET) & CrossAmerica Partners (NYSE:CAPL)

CrossAmerica Partners (NYSE:CAPL) and Vermilion Energy (NYSE:VET) are both small-cap energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations and valuation.

Volatility and Risk

CrossAmerica Partners has a beta of 0.29, indicating that its stock price is 71% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Vermilion Energy has a beta of 0.52, indicating that its stock price is 48% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

CrossAmerica Partners pays an annual dividend of $2.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 10.6%. Vermilion Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.39 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.6%. CrossAmerica Partners pays out 169.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Vermilion Energy pays out -17.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Vermilion Energy has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for CrossAmerica Partners and Vermilion Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CrossAmerica Partners	0	2	0	0	2.00
Vermilion Energy	1	6	2	0	2.11

Vermilion Energy has a consensus target price of $15.00, suggesting a potential upside of 36.65%. Given Vermilion Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Vermilion Energy is more favorable than CrossAmerica Partners.

Profitability

This table compares CrossAmerica Partners and Vermilion Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CrossAmerica Partners	1.24%	-38.02%	4.21%
Vermilion Energy	-22.78%	4.25%	1.63%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares CrossAmerica Partners and Vermilion Energy”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CrossAmerica Partners	$3.66 billion	0.21	$39.11 million	$1.24	16.05
Vermilion Energy	$1.30 billion	1.28	-$467.78 million	($2.28)	-4.81

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

Insider & Institutional Ownership

24.1% of CrossAmerica Partners shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 31.9% of Vermilion Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 52.0% of CrossAmerica Partners shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 2.6% of Vermilion Energy shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Vermilion Energy beats CrossAmerica Partners on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CrossAmerica Partners

CrossAmerica Partners LP is a publicly traded master limited partnership focused on the wholesale distribution of motor fuel and the operation of convenience stores. It supplies branded and unbranded gasoline and diesel to independent dealers, lessee dealers, and company-operated locations. The partnership also owns or leases convenience-store properties and operates retail locations that sell fuel and convenience goods. Its network is concentrated in the eastern and central United States. CrossAmerica was formed as Lehigh Gas Partners LP and adopted its current name in 2014.

About Vermilion Energy

Vermilion Energy Inc. is a Calgary-based oil and natural gas producer with operations in North America and Europe. The company explores for, develops and produces conventional energy resources, including crude oil and natural gas. Its operating areas include Canada, the United States, France, the Netherlands, Germany and Croatia. Vermilion’s European natural gas production provides exposure to regional energy markets, while its North American business includes oil and gas assets. The company traces its roots to 1994 and has expanded through the development and acquisition of producing assets.