Financial Contrast: Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) versus Paladin Energy (OTCMKTS:PALAF)

Paladin Energy (OTCMKTS:PALAF) and Green Plains (NASDAQ:GPRE) are both energy companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations and risk.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.0% of Paladin Energy shares are held by institutional investors. 1.4% of Green Plains shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Paladin Energy and Green Plains’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Paladin Energy	-7.08%	-1.90%	-1.44%
Green Plains	6.78%	14.52%	7.33%

Volatility and Risk

Paladin Energy has a beta of 1.36, indicating that its stock price is 36% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Green Plains has a beta of 1.17, indicating that its stock price is 17% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Paladin Energy and Green Plains, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Paladin Energy	1	0	1	0	2.00
Green Plains	3	3	3	0	2.00

Paladin Energy presently has a consensus target price of $9.70, suggesting a potential upside of 22.91%. Green Plains has a consensus target price of $15.43, suggesting a potential downside of 5.05%. Given Paladin Energy’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Paladin Energy is more favorable than Green Plains.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Paladin Energy and Green Plains”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Paladin Energy	$177.68 million	19.96	-$44.64 million	($0.05)	-157.84
Green Plains	$2.09 billion	0.54	-$121.28 million	$1.59	10.22

Paladin Energy has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Green Plains. Paladin Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Green Plains, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Green Plains beats Paladin Energy on 8 of the 13 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Paladin Energy

Paladin Energy Ltd develops, explores for, owns, and operates uranium mines in Australia, Canada, and Africa. The company operates through Exploration, Namibia, and Australia segments. Its flagship project is the Langer Heinrich mine located in the Namib Desert in Namibia. The company was formerly known as Paladin Resources Ltd and changed its name to Paladin Energy Limited in November 2007. Paladin Energy Ltd was incorporated in 1993 and is headquartered in Perth, Australia.

About Green Plains

Green Plains Inc. produces low-carbon fuels in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: Ethanol Production, Agribusiness and Energy Services, and Partnership. The Ethanol Production segment produces ethanol, distillers grains, and ultra-high protein and renewable corn oil. The Agribusiness and Energy Services segment engages in the grain procurement, handling and storage, commodity marketing business; and trading of ethanol, distiller grains, renewable corn oil, grain, natural gas, and other commodities in various markets. This segment also provides grain drying and storage services to grain producers. The Partnership segment offers fuel storage and transportation services. It operates 24 ethanol storage facilities; two fuel terminal facilities; and a fleet of approximately 2,180 leased railcars. The company was formerly known as Green Plains Renewable Energy, Inc. and changed its name to Green Plains Inc. in May 2014. Green Plains Inc. was incorporated in 2004 and is headquartered in Omaha, Nebraska.