Canadian Natural Resources (CNQ) Competitors

Suncor Energy (TSE:SU) and Canadian Natural Resources (TSE:CNQ) are both large-cap energy companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, earnings, dividends, media sentiment, risk, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Is SU or CNQ a better dividend stock?

Suncor Energy pays an annual dividend of C$2.26 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.2%. Canadian Natural Resources pays an annual dividend of C$2.26 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.4%. Suncor Energy pays out 49.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Canadian Natural Resources pays out 57.4% 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.

Do analysts rate SU or CNQ?

Suncor Energy currently has a consensus target price of C$63.58, suggesting a potential upside of 17.66%. Canadian Natural Resources has a consensus target price of C$54.73, suggesting a potential upside of 29.72%. Given Canadian Natural Resources' stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Canadian Natural Resources is more favorable than Suncor Energy.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Suncor Energy	0 Sell rating(s)	6 Hold rating(s)	5 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.58
Canadian Natural Resources	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	6 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.80

Do insiders and institutionals hold more shares of SU or CNQ?

47.5% of Suncor Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 60.5% of Canadian Natural Resources shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.0% of Suncor Energy shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.3% of Canadian Natural Resources shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Is SU or CNQ more profitable?

Canadian Natural Resources has a net margin of 21.25% compared to Suncor Energy's net margin of 15.15%. Canadian Natural Resources' return on equity of 19.14% beat Suncor Energy's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Suncor Energy	15.15%	18.10%	7.01%
Canadian Natural Resources	21.25%	19.14%	8.80%

Which has more volatility & risk, SU or CNQ?

Suncor Energy has a beta of 0.758343, meaning that its share price is 24% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Canadian Natural Resources has a beta of 0.880488, meaning that its share price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Does the media prefer SU or CNQ?

In the previous week, Canadian Natural Resources had 10 more articles in the media than Suncor Energy. MarketBeat recorded 20 mentions for Canadian Natural Resources and 10 mentions for Suncor Energy. Canadian Natural Resources' average media sentiment score of 1.12 beat Suncor Energy's score of 0.99 indicating that Canadian Natural Resources is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Suncor Energy	4 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	2 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Canadian Natural Resources	8 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	0 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has stronger valuation & earnings, SU or CNQ?

Suncor Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Canadian Natural Resources. Canadian Natural Resources is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Suncor Energy, 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
Suncor Energy	C$53.64B	1.24	C$7.92B	C$4.54	11.90
Canadian Natural Resources	C$43.85B	2.00	C$7.52B	C$3.94	10.71

Summary

Canadian Natural Resources beats Suncor Energy on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.