Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) vs. EQT (NYSE:EQT) Head to Head Review

EQT (NYSE:EQT) and Range Resources (NYSE:RRC) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, earnings and valuation.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares EQT and Range Resources”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
EQT	$5.27 billion	6.73	$230.58 million	$0.57	104.00
Range Resources	$2.42 billion	4.09	$266.34 million	$1.12	36.91

Range Resources has lower revenue, but higher earnings than EQT. Range Resources is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than EQT, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk & Volatility

EQT has a beta of 0.65, indicating that its stock price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Range Resources has a beta of 0.63, indicating that its stock price is 37% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent recommendations and price targets for EQT and Range Resources, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
EQT	1	4	13	0	2.67
Range Resources	1	12	7	1	2.38

EQT presently has a consensus price target of $57.39, indicating a potential downside of 3.19%. Range Resources has a consensus price target of $41.95, indicating a potential upside of 1.48%. Given Range Resources’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Range Resources is more favorable than EQT.

Profitability

This table compares EQT and Range Resources’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
EQT	6.59%	5.52%	3.23%
Range Resources	11.02%	15.10%	8.06%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

90.8% of EQT shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.9% of Range Resources shares are held by institutional investors. 0.7% of EQT shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of Range Resources shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

EQT pays an annual dividend of $0.63 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.1%. Range Resources pays an annual dividend of $0.36 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. EQT pays out 110.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Range Resources pays out 32.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. EQT has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years and Range Resources has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. EQT is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Range Resources beats EQT on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About EQT

EQT Corporation operates as a natural gas production company in the United States. The company sells natural gas and natural gas liquids to marketers, utilities, and industrial customers through pipelines located in the Appalachian Basin. It also offers marketing services and contractual pipeline capacity management services. The company was formerly known as Equitable Resources Inc. and changed its name to EQT Corporation in February 2009. EQT Corporation was founded in 1878 and is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

About Range Resources

Range Resources Corporation operates as an independent natural gas, natural gas liquids (NGLs), crude oil, and condensate company in the United States. The company engages in the exploration, development, and acquisition of natural gas and crude oil properties located in the Appalachian region. It sells natural gas to utilities, marketing and midstream companies, and industrial users; NGLs to petrochemical end users, marketers/traders, and natural gas processors; and oil and condensate to crude oil processors, transporters, and refining and marketing companies. The company was formerly known as Lomak Petroleum Inc. and changed its name to Range Resources Corporation in August 1998. Range Resources Corporation was founded in 1976 and is headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas.