Comparing Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) & Universal Energy (OTCMKTS:UVSE)

Viper Energy (NASDAQ:VNOM) and Universal Energy (OTCMKTS:UVSE) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, dividends, risk and institutional ownership.

Risk & Volatility

Viper Energy has a beta of 0.5, indicating that its share price is 50% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Universal Energy has a beta of 0.36, indicating that its share price is 64% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Viper Energy and Universal Energy’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Viper Energy	-4.87%	2.62%	2.18%
Universal Energy	N/A	N/A	N/A

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Viper Energy and Universal Energy”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Viper Energy	$1.40 billion	11.64	-$68.00 million	($0.23)	-197.39
Universal Energy	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Universal Energy has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Viper Energy.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

87.7% of Viper Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.2% of Viper Energy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.2% of Universal Energy shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Viper Energy and Universal Energy, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Viper Energy	0	2	14	1	2.94
Universal Energy	0	0	0	0	0.00

Viper Energy presently has a consensus target price of $52.60, suggesting a potential upside of 15.86%. Given Viper Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Viper Energy is more favorable than Universal Energy.

Summary

Viper Energy beats Universal Energy on 9 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Viper Energy

Viper Energy, Inc. engages in the acquisition of oil and natural gas properties. It owns, acquires, and exploits oil and natural gas properties in North America. The company was founded on February 27, 2014 and is headquartered in Midland, TX.

About Universal Energy

Universal Energy Corp., an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of crude oil and natural gas in the United States and Canada. It has 13 oil and gas lease projects. The company was founded in 2002 and is based in Lake Mary, Florida.