Flex LNG (NYSE:FLNG) & DHT (NYSE:DHT) Head-To-Head Contrast

DHT (NYSE:DHT) and Flex LNG (NYSE:FLNG) are both transportation companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, analyst recommendations, earnings, institutional ownership, dividends, valuation and risk.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

58.5% of DHT shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Flex LNG 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.

Volatility and Risk

DHT has a beta of -0.12, meaning that its share price is 112% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Flex LNG has a beta of 0.18, meaning that its share price is 82% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

DHT pays an annual dividend of $2.56 per share and has a dividend yield of 12.8%. Flex LNG pays an annual dividend of $3.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 9.7%. DHT pays out 124.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Flex LNG pays out 214.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. DHT is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Profitability

This table compares DHT and Flex LNG’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
DHT	58.54%	27.54%	20.16%
Flex LNG	22.26%	12.15%	3.37%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for DHT and Flex LNG, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
DHT	0	3	3	0	2.50
Flex LNG	2	2	0	0	1.50

DHT presently has a consensus target price of $19.33, suggesting a potential downside of 3.57%. Flex LNG has a consensus target price of $24.00, suggesting a potential downside of 22.35%. Given DHT’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe DHT is more favorable than Flex LNG.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares DHT and Flex LNG”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
DHT	$498.40 million	6.48	$211.09 million	$2.06	9.73
Flex LNG	$347.64 million	4.81	$74.82 million	$1.40	22.08

DHT has higher revenue and earnings than Flex LNG. DHT is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Flex LNG, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

DHT beats Flex LNG on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About DHT

DHT Holdings, Inc., through its subsidiaries, owns and operates crude oil tankers primarily in Monaco, Singapore, and Norway. The company also offers technical management services. As of March 15, 2024, it had a fleet of 24 very large crude carriers. The company was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.

About Flex LNG

FLEX LNG Ltd. engages in the seaborne transportation of liquefied natural gas (LPG) through the ownership and operation of LNG carriers. The company was founded by Philip Eystein Fjeld, Trym Tveitnes and Jostein Ueland in September 2006 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.