Reviewing Noble (NYSE:NE) & CES Energy Solutions (OTCMKTS:CESDF)

Noble (NYSE:NE) and CES Energy Solutions (OTCMKTS:CESDF) are both energy companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, earnings, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

68.1% of Noble shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 42.8% of CES Energy Solutions shares are held by institutional investors. 1.5% of Noble 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.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Noble and CES Energy Solutions”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Noble	$3.29 billion	2.20	$216.72 million	$0.93	48.68
CES Energy Solutions	N/A	N/A	N/A	$0.29	48.05

Noble has higher revenue and earnings than CES Energy Solutions. CES Energy Solutions is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Noble, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and target prices for Noble and CES Energy Solutions, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Noble	1	6	2	1	2.30
CES Energy Solutions	0	1	4	0	2.80

Noble presently has a consensus target price of $44.71, suggesting a potential downside of 1.23%. Given Noble’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Noble is more favorable than CES Energy Solutions.

Profitability

This table compares Noble and CES Energy Solutions’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Noble	4.88%	1.93%	1.18%
CES Energy Solutions	N/A	N/A	N/A

Dividends

Noble pays an annual dividend of $2.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.4%. CES Energy Solutions pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Noble pays out 215.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. CES Energy Solutions pays out 97.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Summary

Noble beats CES Energy Solutions on 11 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Noble

Noble Corp. Plc engages in the provision offshore drilling services for oil and gas industry. It focuses on a balanced fleet of floating and jackup rigs and the deployment of drilling rigs in oil and gas basins around the world. The company was founded by Lloyd Noble and Art Olson in 1921 and is headquartered in London, the United Kingdom.

About CES Energy Solutions

CES Energy Solutions Corp., together with its subsidiaries, engages in design, implement, and manufacture of advanced consumable fluids and specialty chemicals in the United States and Canada. The company provides solutions for drill-bit, point of completion and stimulation, wellhead and pump-jack, and pipeline and midstream markets. Its solutions include corrosion inhibitors, demulsifiers, H2S scavengers, paraffin control products, surfactants, scale inhibitors, biocides, and other specialty products. The company also designs and implements drilling fluid systems and completion solutions for oil and natural gas producers; designs and manufactures production and specialty chemicals for use in the oil and natural gas production and industrial markets; designs, blends, and sells specialty drilling fluids; designs, blends, and sells simulation and production chemicals for oil and gas producers; and operates trucks and trailers to transport drilling fluids to operators in the oil and gas industry. In addition, it provides environmental consulting, water management and transfer services, and drilling fluids waste disposal services; and laboratory services. The company was formerly known as Canadian Energy Services & Technology Corp. and changed its name to CES Energy Solutions Corp. in June 2017. CES Energy Solutions Corp. was incorporated in 1986 and is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.