BP (BP) Competitors

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

Is SHEL or BP a better dividend stock?

Shell pays an annual dividend of $2.86 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. BP pays an annual dividend of $1.90 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.9%. Shell pays out 65.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. BP pays out -413.0% 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. BP is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Do analysts prefer SHEL or BP?

Shell currently has a consensus price target of $78.69, suggesting a potential upside of 11.78%. BP has a consensus price target of $35.50, suggesting a potential upside of 10.51%. Given Shell's stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Shell is more favorable than BP.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Shell	0 Sell rating(s)	3 Hold rating(s)	10 Buy rating(s)	2 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.93
BP	2 Sell rating(s)	14 Hold rating(s)	1 Buy rating(s)	3 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.25

Which has more risk & volatility, SHEL or BP?

Shell has a beta of 0.4, suggesting that its stock price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, BP has a beta of 0.54, suggesting that its stock price is 46% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Is SHEL or BP more profitable?

Shell has a net margin of 4.75% compared to BP's net margin of -0.62%. Shell's return on equity of 11.71% beat BP's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Shell	4.75%	11.71%	5.51%
BP	-0.62%	9.51%	2.74%

Does the media prefer SHEL or BP?

In the previous week, Shell had 17 more articles in the media than BP. MarketBeat recorded 33 mentions for Shell and 16 mentions for BP. Shell's average media sentiment score of 0.62 beat BP's score of 0.43 indicating that Shell is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Shell	17 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	9 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	2 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
BP	3 Very Positive mention(s)	4 Positive mention(s)	5 Neutral mention(s)	2 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Which has stronger earnings & valuation, SHEL or BP?

Shell has higher revenue and earnings than BP. BP is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Shell, 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
Shell	$289.03B	0.72	$16.09B	$4.34	16.22
BP	$194.63B	0.44	$381M	-$0.46	-69.84

Do institutionals & insiders hold more shares of SHEL or BP?

28.6% of Shell shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 11.0% of BP shares are held by institutional investors. 1.0% of Shell shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of BP shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Shell beats BP on 14 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.