Contrasting EQT (NYSE:EQT) & Atlas Energy Solutions (NYSE:AESI)

Atlas Energy Solutions (NYSE:AESI) and EQT (NYSE:EQT) are both oils/energy companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, valuation, earnings, risk and institutional ownership.

Risk & Volatility

Atlas Energy Solutions has a beta of 0.56, suggesting that its share price is 44% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, EQT has a beta of 1.06, suggesting that its share price is 6% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

34.6% of Atlas Energy Solutions shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 90.8% of EQT shares are held by institutional investors. 24.3% of Atlas Energy Solutions shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of EQT shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Atlas Energy Solutions and EQT”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Atlas Energy Solutions	$778.94 million	2.86	$105.43 million	$1.80	12.38
EQT	$4.58 billion	3.55	$1.74 billion	$1.38	26.64

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Atlas Energy Solutions and EQT, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Atlas Energy Solutions	0	0	8	2	3.20
EQT	0	8	9	0	2.53

Atlas Energy Solutions currently has a consensus target price of $26.25, indicating a potential upside of 17.79%. EQT has a consensus target price of $42.29, indicating a potential upside of 15.04%. Given Atlas Energy Solutions’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Atlas Energy Solutions is more favorable than EQT.

Profitability

This table compares Atlas Energy Solutions and EQT’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Atlas Energy Solutions	13.71%	16.75%	7.61%
EQT	12.45%	4.52%	2.68%

Dividends

Atlas Energy Solutions pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. EQT pays an annual dividend of $0.63 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.7%. Atlas Energy Solutions pays out 51.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. EQT pays out 45.7% 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.

Summary

Atlas Energy Solutions beats EQT on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Atlas Energy Solutions

Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. engages in the production, processing, and sale of mesh and sand that are used as a proppant during the well completion process in the Permian Basin of Texas and New Mexico. The company provides transportation and logistics, storage solutions, and contract labor services. It sells its products and services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies, and oilfield services companies. Atlas Energy Solutions Inc. was founded in 2017 and is headquartered in Austin, Texas.

About EQT

EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. The company sells natural gas and natural gas liquids to marketers, utilities, and industrial customers through pipelines located in the Appalachian Basin. It also offers marketing services and contractual pipeline capacity management services. The company was formerly known as Equitable Resources Inc. and changed its name to EQT Corporation in February 2009. EQT Corporation was founded in 1878 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.