Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) & Kodiak Gas Services (NYSE:KGS) Head to Head Comparison

Kodiak Gas Services (NYSE:KGS) and Core Laboratories (NYSE:CLB) are both energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, valuation, earnings, risk, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

24.9% of Kodiak Gas Services shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.8% of Core Laboratories shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of Kodiak Gas Services shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.3% of Core Laboratories shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Dividends

Kodiak Gas Services pays an annual dividend of $1.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Core Laboratories pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.3%. Kodiak Gas Services pays out 233.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Core Laboratories pays out 7.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Kodiak Gas Services has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Kodiak Gas Services is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Volatility & Risk

Kodiak Gas Services has a beta of 0.96, meaning that its share price is 4% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Core Laboratories has a beta of 1.08, meaning that its share price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Kodiak Gas Services and Core Laboratories’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Kodiak Gas Services	5.77%	11.92%	3.70%
Core Laboratories	5.10%	10.03%	4.71%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Kodiak Gas Services and Core Laboratories”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Kodiak Gas Services	$1.31 billion	4.93	$80.52 million	$0.84	75.99
Core Laboratories	$526.52 million	1.09	$29.67 million	$0.56	22.32

Kodiak Gas Services has higher revenue and earnings than Core Laboratories. Core Laboratories is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Kodiak Gas Services, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings for Kodiak Gas Services and Core Laboratories, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Kodiak Gas Services	0	2	10	0	2.83
Core Laboratories	0	1	1	0	2.50

Kodiak Gas Services currently has a consensus target price of $78.89, suggesting a potential upside of 23.59%. Core Laboratories has a consensus target price of $21.00, suggesting a potential upside of 68.00%. Given Core Laboratories’ higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Core Laboratories is more favorable than Kodiak Gas Services.

Summary

Kodiak Gas Services beats Core Laboratories on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Kodiak Gas Services

Kodiak Gas Services, Inc. operates contract compression infrastructure for customers in the oil and gas industry in the United States. It operates in two segments, Compression Operations and Other Services. The Compression Operations segment operates company-owned and customer-owned compression infrastructure to enable the production, gathering, and transportation of natural gas and oil. The Other Services segment provides a range of contract services, including station construction, maintenance and overhaul, and other ancillary time and material-based offerings. The company was formerly known as Frontier TopCo, Inc. Kodiak Gas Services, Inc. was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas.

About Core Laboratories

Core Laboratories Inc. provides reservoir description and production enhancement services and products to the oil and gas industry in the United States, and internationally. It operates through Reservoir Description and Production Enhancement segments. The Reservoir Description segment includes the characterization of petroleum reservoir rock and reservoir fluid samples to enhance production and improve recovery of crude oil and gas from its clients' reservoirs. It offers laboratory-based analytical and field services to characterize properties of crude oil and oil delivered products; and proprietary and joint industry studies, as well as services that support carbon capture, utilization and storage, geothermal projects, and the evaluation and appraisal of mining activities. The Production Enhancement segment provides services and products relating to reservoir well completions, perforations, stimulations, production, and well abandonment. It offers integrated diagnostic services to evaluate and monitor the effectiveness of well completions and to develop solutions to improve the effectiveness of enhanced oil recovery projects. The company markets and sells its products through a combination of sales representatives, technical seminars, trade shows, and print advertising, as well as through distributors. Core Laboratories Inc. was founded in 1936 and is based in Houston, Texas.