Core Laboratories (CLB) Competitors

Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) and Patterson-UTI Energy (NASDAQ:PTEN) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, risk, profitability, dividends, earnings, analyst recommendations and media sentiment.

Which has better earnings & valuation, CLB or PTEN?

Core Laboratories has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Patterson-UTI Energy. Patterson-UTI Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Core Laboratories, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Core Laboratories	$523.85M	1.15	$31.40M	$0.59	21.85
Patterson-UTI Energy	$5.38B	0.47	-$968.03M	-$2.60	-2.52

Does the media refer more to CLB or PTEN?

In the previous week, Patterson-UTI Energy had 5 more articles in the media than Core Laboratories. MarketBeat recorded 15 mentions for Patterson-UTI Energy and 10 mentions for Core Laboratories. Patterson-UTI Energy's average media sentiment score of 0.82 beat Core Laboratories' score of 0.03 indicating that Patterson-UTI Energy is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Core Laboratories	2 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Patterson-UTI Energy	8 Very Positive mention(s)	5 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Is CLB or PTEN more profitable?

Core Laboratories has a net margin of 5.41% compared to Patterson-UTI Energy's net margin of -19.78%. Core Laboratories' return on equity of 15.06% beat Patterson-UTI Energy's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Core Laboratories	5.41%	15.06%	6.45%
Patterson-UTI Energy	-19.78%	-0.70%	-0.43%

Do analysts recommend CLB or PTEN?

Core Laboratories currently has a consensus target price of $15.00, indicating a potential upside of 16.37%. Patterson-UTI Energy has a consensus target price of $9.50, indicating a potential upside of 45.04%. Given Patterson-UTI Energy's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Patterson-UTI Energy is more favorable than Core Laboratories.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Core Laboratories	1 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	1.75
Patterson-UTI Energy	0 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	7 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.58

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of CLB or PTEN?

97.8% of Core Laboratories shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.9% of Patterson-UTI Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 0.9% of Core Laboratories shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 2.4% of Patterson-UTI Energy shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Is CLB or PTEN a better dividend stock?

Core Laboratories pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Patterson-UTI Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Core Laboratories pays out 6.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Patterson-UTI Energy pays out -12.3% 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. Patterson-UTI Energy is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Which has more risk and volatility, CLB or PTEN?

Core Laboratories has a beta of 1.41, meaning that its share price is 41% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Patterson-UTI Energy has a beta of 1.32, meaning that its share price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Patterson-UTI Energy beats Core Laboratories on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.