Head to Head Analysis: CNX Resources (NYSE:CNX) and Magnolia Oil & Gas (NYSE:MGY)

CNX Resources (NYSE:CNX) and Magnolia Oil & Gas (NYSE:MGY) are both mid-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings and valuation.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

95.2% of CNX Resources shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.7% of Magnolia Oil & Gas shares are held by institutional investors. 3.1% of CNX Resources shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of Magnolia Oil & Gas shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares CNX Resources and Magnolia Oil & Gas”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CNX Resources	$1.27 billion	3.47	-$90.49 million	($0.68)	-43.39
Magnolia Oil & Gas	$1.32 billion	3.59	$388.30 million	$1.93	12.45

Magnolia Oil & Gas has higher revenue and earnings than CNX Resources. CNX Resources is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Magnolia Oil & Gas, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

CNX Resources has a beta of 1.38, meaning that its stock price is 38% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Magnolia Oil & Gas has a beta of 1.98, meaning that its stock price is 98% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings for CNX Resources and Magnolia Oil & Gas, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CNX Resources	8	7	0	0	1.47
Magnolia Oil & Gas	2	8	4	0	2.14

CNX Resources presently has a consensus price target of $29.67, suggesting a potential upside of 0.54%. Magnolia Oil & Gas has a consensus price target of $27.58, suggesting a potential upside of 14.76%. Given Magnolia Oil & Gas’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Magnolia Oil & Gas is more favorable than CNX Resources.

Profitability

This table compares CNX Resources and Magnolia Oil & Gas’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CNX Resources	-7.14%	6.72%	3.31%
Magnolia Oil & Gas	27.82%	20.74%	14.23%

Summary

Magnolia Oil & Gas beats CNX Resources on 12 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About CNX Resources

CNX Resources Corporation, an independent natural gas and midstream company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of natural gas properties in the Appalachian Basin. The company operates in two segments, Shale and Coalbed Methane (CBM). It produces and sells pipeline quality natural gas primarily for gas wholesalers. The company owns rights to extract natural gas from shale properties in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Ohio, as well as rights to extract natural gas from other shale and shallow oil and gas formations in Illinois, Indiana, New York, and Virginia. It also owns rights to extract CBM in Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, and New Mexico. In addition, the company designs, builds, and operates natural gas gathering systems to move gas from the wellhead to interstate pipelines or other local sales points; owns and operates approximately 2,600 miles of natural gas gathering pipelines, as well as various natural gas processing facilities. It also offers turn-key solutions for water sourcing, delivery, and disposal for its natural gas operations and for third parties. The company was formerly known as CONSOL Energy Inc. and changed its name to CNX Resources Corporation in November 2017. CNX Resources Corporation was founded in 1860 and is headquartered in Canonsburg, Pennsylvania.

About Magnolia Oil & Gas

Magnolia Oil & Gas Corp. engages in the acquisition, development, exploration, and production of oil and natural gas properties. It operates assets located in the Eagle Ford Shale and Austin Chalk formations in South Texas. The company was founded on February 14, 2017 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.