Plains All American Pipeline (NASDAQ:PAA) vs. Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) Head-To-Head Survey

Expand Energy (NASDAQ:EXE) and Plains All American Pipeline (NASDAQ:PAA) are both large-cap energy companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, valuation, analyst recommendations, earnings, risk and institutional ownership.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

97.9% of Expand Energy shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 41.8% of Plains All American Pipeline shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.2% of Expand Energy shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.1% of Plains All American Pipeline shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Expand Energy pays an annual dividend of $2.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Plains All American Pipeline pays an annual dividend of $1.67 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.0%. Expand Energy pays out 19.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Plains All American Pipeline pays out 55.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Plains All American Pipeline has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Plains All American Pipeline is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Expand Energy and Plains All American Pipeline”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Expand Energy	$12.12 billion	1.67	$1.82 billion	$11.54	7.61
Plains All American Pipeline	$44.26 billion	0.38	$1.44 billion	$3.00	7.91

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current ratings and target prices for Expand Energy and Plains All American Pipeline, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Expand Energy	0	5	15	3	2.91
Plains All American Pipeline	2	6	8	2	2.56

Expand Energy presently has a consensus target price of $123.00, suggesting a potential upside of 40.02%. Plains All American Pipeline has a consensus target price of $26.07, suggesting a potential upside of 9.82%. Given Expand Energy’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Expand Energy is more favorable than Plains All American Pipeline.

Profitability

This table compares Expand Energy and Plains All American Pipeline’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Expand Energy	19.78%	10.69%	7.13%
Plains All American Pipeline	5.29%	12.13%	4.59%

Volatility and Risk

Expand Energy has a beta of 0.4, meaning that its share price is 60% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Plains All American Pipeline has a beta of 0.58, meaning that its share price is 42% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Expand Energy beats Plains All American Pipeline on 11 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Expand Energy

Expand Energy Corporation is an independent natural gas exploration and production company focused on developing U.S. shale resources. Its activities include acquiring, exploring and operating oil and natural gas properties, with natural gas as its primary product. The company’s operations are concentrated in the Haynesville region of Louisiana and the Appalachia region, which includes the Marcellus and Utica formations. Its production supports the domestic natural gas market and related energy infrastructure.

About Plains All American Pipeline

Plains All American Pipeline, L.P. is a midstream energy company focused on the transportation, storage, and marketing of crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs). Its infrastructure includes pipelines, gathering systems, storage facilities, and terminals. The company’s systems connect energy-producing regions with refineries and other markets, serving producers, refiners, and other energy customers. Its operations span the United States and Canada. Plains All American Pipeline operates as a master limited partnership and is listed under the ticker symbol PAA.