Ecopetrol (EC) Competitors

Ecopetrol (NYSE:EC) and Equinor ASA (NYSE:EQNR) are both large-cap energy companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, valuation, risk, earnings, media sentiment, institutional ownership and dividends.

Is EC or EQNR more profitable?

Ecopetrol has a net margin of 8.75% compared to Equinor ASA's net margin of 7.60%. Equinor ASA's return on equity of 16.91% beat Ecopetrol's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ecopetrol	8.75%	5.15%	1.82%
Equinor ASA	7.60%	16.91%	5.43%

Does the media favor EC or EQNR?

In the previous week, Equinor ASA had 3 more articles in the media than Ecopetrol. MarketBeat recorded 8 mentions for Equinor ASA and 5 mentions for Ecopetrol. Ecopetrol's average media sentiment score of 0.86 beat Equinor ASA's score of 0.75 indicating that Ecopetrol is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Ecopetrol	3 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Equinor ASA	4 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Do analysts prefer EC or EQNR?

Ecopetrol currently has a consensus price target of $11.00, suggesting a potential upside of 19.18%. Equinor ASA has a consensus price target of $22.71, suggesting a potential downside of 6.93%. Given Ecopetrol's stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Ecopetrol is more favorable than Equinor ASA.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ecopetrol	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.25
Equinor ASA	7 Sell rating(s)	5 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	1.81

Which has higher valuation and earnings, EC or EQNR?

Ecopetrol has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Equinor ASA. Ecopetrol is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equinor ASA, 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
Ecopetrol	$32.80B	0.58	$15.23B	$1.31	7.05
Equinor ASA	$106.47B	0.68	$8.81B	$3.01	8.11

Is EC or EQNR a better dividend stock?

Ecopetrol pays an annual dividend of $1.51 per share and has a dividend yield of 16.4%. Equinor ASA pays an annual dividend of $1.21 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.0%. Ecopetrol pays out 115.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Equinor ASA pays out 40.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Do institutionals and insiders believe in EC or EQNR?

5.5% of Equinor ASA shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Equinor ASA shares are owned by company 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.

Which has more risk & volatility, EC or EQNR?

Ecopetrol has a beta of 0.88, meaning that its share price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equinor ASA has a beta of 0.57, meaning that its share price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Equinor ASA beats Ecopetrol on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.