Critical Contrast: Helmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP) and Solaris Energy Infrastructure (NYSE:SEI)
by Sarita Garza · The Markets DailyHelmerich & Payne (NYSE:HP – Get Free Report) and Solaris Energy Infrastructure (NYSE:SEI – Get Free Report) are both mid-cap energy companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, analyst recommendations, risk, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation and profitability.
Profitability
This table compares Helmerich & Payne and Solaris Energy Infrastructure’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Helmerich & Payne | -3.43% | -2.35% | -0.99% |
| Solaris Energy Infrastructure | 7.19% | 13.26% | 4.80% |
Risk & Volatility
Helmerich & Payne has a beta of 0.66, meaning that its stock price is 34% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Solaris Energy Infrastructure has a beta of 1.25, meaning that its stock price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Insider and Institutional Ownership
96.1% of Helmerich & Payne shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 67.4% of Solaris Energy Infrastructure shares are owned by institutional investors. 4.4% of Helmerich & Payne shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 20.2% of Solaris Energy Infrastructure shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Dividends
Helmerich & Payne pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.6%. Solaris Energy Infrastructure pays an annual dividend of $0.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.7%. Helmerich & Payne pays out -70.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Solaris Energy Infrastructure pays out 56.5% 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. Helmerich & Payne is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.
Analyst Ratings
This is a summary of recent recommendations for Helmerich & Payne and Solaris Energy Infrastructure, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Helmerich & Payne | 2 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 2.27 |
| Solaris Energy Infrastructure | 0 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 2.83 |
Helmerich & Payne currently has a consensus target price of $43.10, suggesting a potential upside of 11.54%. Solaris Energy Infrastructure has a consensus target price of $92.00, suggesting a potential upside of 29.18%. Given Solaris Energy Infrastructure’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Solaris Energy Infrastructure is more favorable than Helmerich & Payne.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Helmerich & Payne and Solaris Energy Infrastructure”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Helmerich & Payne | $4.00 billion | 0.97 | -$163.70 million | ($1.41) | -27.40 |
| Solaris Energy Infrastructure | $622.21 million | 8.76 | $30.17 million | $0.85 | 83.79 |
Solaris Energy Infrastructure has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Helmerich & Payne. Helmerich & Payne is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Solaris Energy Infrastructure, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Summary
Solaris Energy Infrastructure beats Helmerich & Payne on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Helmerich & Payne
Founded in 1920, Helmerich & Payne, Inc. (H&P) (NYSE: HP) is committed to delivering industry leading levels of drilling productivity and reliability. H&P operates with the highest level of integrity, safety and innovation to deliver superior results for its customers and returns for shareholders. Through its subsidiaries, the Company designs, fabricates and operates high-performance drilling rigs in conventional and unconventional plays around the world. H&P also develops and implements advanced automation, directional drilling and survey management technologies. H&P’s fleet includes 299 land rigs in the U.S., 31 international land rigs and eight offshore platform rigs.
About Solaris Energy Infrastructure
Solaris Energy Infrastructure, Inc. is a holding company, which engages in the manufacture of patented mobile proppant management systems that unload, store, and deliver proppant to oil and natural gas well sites. Its products include Mobile Proppant and Mobile Chemical Management Systems, and Inventory Management Software. The firm’s services include field, last mile management, and transloading services. The company was founded by William A. Zartler in 2014 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.