Ascent Resources (AST) Competitors

Sound Energy (LON:SOU) and Ascent Resources (LON:AST) are both small-cap energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, dividends, valuation, media sentiment, analyst recommendations, community ranking, institutional ownership, profitability and earnings.

Does the media refer more to SOU or AST?

In the previous week, Sound Energy had 10 more articles in the media than Ascent Resources. MarketBeat recorded 11 mentions for Sound Energy and 1 mentions for Ascent Resources. Ascent Resources' average media sentiment score of 0.00 beat Sound Energy's score of -0.06 indicating that Ascent Resources is being referred to more favorably in the news media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Sound Energy	0 Very Positive mention(s)	3 Positive mention(s)	3 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	2 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral
Ascent Resources	0 Very Positive mention(s)	0 Positive mention(s)	1 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, SOU or AST?

Ascent Resources has higher revenue and earnings than Sound Energy. Sound Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Ascent Resources, 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
Sound Energy	-£180K	-84.89	-£123.83M	-£0.06	-12.48
Ascent Resources	£1.41M	2.74	-£2.07M	-£1.09	-1.49

Is SOU or AST more profitable?

Sound Energy's return on equity of -134.26% beat Ascent Resources' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Sound Energy	N/A	-134.26%	-58.07%
Ascent Resources	N/A	-214.17%	-114.93%

Which has more risk and volatility, SOU or AST?

Sound Energy has a beta of 1.83, indicating that its stock price is 83% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Ascent Resources has a beta of 0.01, indicating that its stock price is 99% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do analysts recommend SOU or AST?

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Sound Energy	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	N/A
Ascent Resources	0 Sell rating(s)	0 Hold rating(s)	0 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	N/A

Do insiders & institutionals believe in SOU or AST?

4.1% of Sound Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 17.8% of Ascent Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 50.7% of Sound Energy shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 57.8% of Ascent Resources shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Does the MarketBeat Community believe in SOU or AST?

Sound Energy received 344 more outperform votes than Ascent Resources when rated by MarketBeat users. Likewise, 76.08% of users gave Sound Energy an outperform vote while only 60.73% of users gave Ascent Resources an outperform vote.

Company	Underperform	Outperform
Sound Energy	Outperform Votes 477 76.08%	Underperform Votes 150 23.92%
Ascent Resources	Outperform Votes 133 60.73%	Underperform Votes 86 39.27%

Summary

Sound Energy and Ascent Resources tied by winning 7 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.