Head-To-Head Comparison: SFL (NYSE:SFL) vs. ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM)

SFL (NYSE:SFL) and ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) are both energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, institutional ownership, earnings, valuation, dividends, analyst recommendations and risk.

Risk and Volatility

SFL has a beta of 0.43, meaning that its share price is 57% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, ExxonMobil has a beta of 0.21, meaning that its share price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

SFL pays an annual dividend of $0.88 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.3%. ExxonMobil pays an annual dividend of $4.12 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. SFL pays out 183.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. ExxonMobil pays out 53.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. SFL has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years and ExxonMobil has increased its dividend for 42 consecutive years.

Profitability

This table compares SFL and ExxonMobil’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SFL	8.76%	3.41%	0.92%
ExxonMobil	8.88%	13.14%	7.62%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares SFL and ExxonMobil”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SFL	$733.04 million	2.37	-$26.43 million	$0.48	24.99
ExxonMobil	$332.24 billion	2.23	$28.84 billion	$7.77	22.96

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

Institutional & Insider Ownership

28.6% of SFL shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 61.8% of ExxonMobil shares are held by institutional investors. 0.0% of ExxonMobil shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for SFL and ExxonMobil, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SFL	0	1	2	0	2.67
ExxonMobil	0	14	11	0	2.44

SFL currently has a consensus price target of $14.00, suggesting a potential upside of 16.71%. ExxonMobil has a consensus price target of $167.30, suggesting a potential downside of 6.20%. Given SFL’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe SFL is more favorable than ExxonMobil.

Summary

ExxonMobil beats SFL on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SFL

SFL Corporation Ltd., a maritime and offshore asset owning and chartering company, engages in the ownership, operation, and chartering out of vessels and offshore related assets on medium and long-term charters. The company operates in various sectors of the maritime, and shipping and offshore industries, including oil transportation, dry bulk shipments, chemical transportation, oil products transportation, container transportation, car transportation, and drilling rigs. As of December 31, 2023, the company owned seven crude oil carriers, six oil product tankers, 15 dry bulk carriers, 32 container vessels, one jack-up drilling rig, one ultra-deepwater drilling rig, and five car carriers. It primarily operates in Bermuda, Canada, Cyprus, Liberia, Namibia, Norway, Singapore, the United Kingdom, and the Marshall Islands. The company was formerly known as Ship Finance International Limited and changed its name to SFL Corporation Ltd. in September 2019. SFL Corporation Ltd. was founded in 2003 and is based in Hamilton, Bermuda.

About ExxonMobil

ExxonMobil Corporation engages in the exploration and production of crude oil and natural gas in the United States and internationally. It operates through Upstream, Energy Products, Chemical Products, and Specialty Products segments. The Upstream segment explores for and produces crude oil and natural gas. The Energy Products segment offers fuels, aromatics, catalysts, and licensing services. It sells its products under the Exxon, Esso, and Mobil brands. The Chemical Products segment manufactures and markets petrochemicals, including olefins, polyolefins, and intermediates. The Specialty Products segment offers performance products, including lubricants, basestocks, waxes, synthetics, elastomers, and resins. The company is also involved in the manufacturing, trade, transport, and selling crude oil, natural gas, petroleum products, petrochemicals, and other specialty products in pursuit of lower-emission business opportunities, including carbon capture and storage, hydrogen, lower-emission fuels, and lithium. Exxon Mobil Corporation was founded in 1870 and is based in Spring, Texas.