Halliburton (HAL) Competitors

Baker Hughes (NASDAQ:BKR) and Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) are both large-cap energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, dividends, media sentiment, risk, valuation and institutional ownership.

Is BKR or HAL a better dividend stock?

Baker Hughes pays an annual dividend of $0.92 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Halliburton pays an annual dividend of $0.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Baker Hughes pays out 31.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Halliburton pays out 28.5% 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. Baker Hughes has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years and Halliburton has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years. Halliburton is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Which has higher earnings and valuation, BKR or HAL?

Baker Hughes has higher revenue and earnings than Halliburton. Halliburton is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Baker Hughes, 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
Baker Hughes	$27.83B	1.41	$2.98B	$2.93	13.52
Halliburton	$22.94B	0.81	$2.50B	$2.39	8.99

Is BKR or HAL more profitable?

Baker Hughes has a net margin of 10.51% compared to Halliburton's net margin of 9.31%. Halliburton's return on equity of 24.01% beat Baker Hughes' return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Baker Hughes	10.51%	14.70%	6.47%
Halliburton	9.31%	24.01%	9.81%

Do analysts prefer BKR or HAL?

Baker Hughes currently has a consensus price target of $48.50, suggesting a potential upside of 22.41%. Halliburton has a consensus price target of $33.53, suggesting a potential upside of 56.01%. Given Halliburton's higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Halliburton is more favorable than Baker Hughes.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Baker Hughes	0 Sell rating(s)	2 Hold rating(s)	18 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.90
Halliburton	0 Sell rating(s)	7 Hold rating(s)	14 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.67

Do institutionals and insiders believe in BKR or HAL?

92.1% of Baker Hughes shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 85.2% of Halliburton shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Baker Hughes shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.6% of Halliburton shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Does the media favor BKR or HAL?

In the previous week, Baker Hughes had 6 more articles in the media than Halliburton. MarketBeat recorded 27 mentions for Baker Hughes and 21 mentions for Halliburton. Baker Hughes' average media sentiment score of 0.75 beat Halliburton's score of 0.39 indicating that Baker Hughes is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
Baker Hughes	14 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	7 Neutral mention(s)	1 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
Halliburton	7 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	3 Negative mention(s)	1 Very Negative mention(s)	Neutral

Which has more volatility & risk, BKR or HAL?

Baker Hughes has a beta of 0.91, suggesting that its stock price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Halliburton has a beta of 1.13, suggesting that its stock price is 13% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Baker Hughes beats Halliburton on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.