Contrasting Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) & Kimbell Royalty Partners (NYSE:KRP)

Vital Energy (NYSE:VTLE) and Kimbell Royalty Partners (NYSE:KRP) are both small-cap oils/energy companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, profitability, risk, dividends, earnings and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Vital Energy and Kimbell Royalty Partners’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Vital Energy	-8.89%	9.48%	4.68%
Kimbell Royalty Partners	11.33%	5.82%	3.05%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

86.5% of Vital Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 25.8% of Kimbell Royalty Partners shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of Vital Energy shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.6% of Kimbell Royalty Partners shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

Vital Energy has a beta of 3.12, indicating that its stock price is 212% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Kimbell Royalty Partners has a beta of 1.08, indicating that its stock price is 8% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Vital Energy and Kimbell Royalty Partners”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Vital Energy	$1.95 billion	0.52	$695.08 million	($4.75)	-5.63
Kimbell Royalty Partners	$324.31 million	4.51	$66.54 million	$0.51	30.02

Vital Energy has higher revenue and earnings than Kimbell Royalty Partners. Vital Energy is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Kimbell Royalty Partners, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for Vital Energy and Kimbell Royalty Partners, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Vital Energy	2	6	2	0	2.00
Kimbell Royalty Partners	1	0	2	1	2.75

Vital Energy currently has a consensus target price of $45.70, suggesting a potential upside of 70.91%. Kimbell Royalty Partners has a consensus target price of $20.25, suggesting a potential upside of 32.27%. Given Vital Energy’s higher possible upside, equities analysts plainly believe Vital Energy is more favorable than Kimbell Royalty Partners.

About Vital Energy

Vital Energy, Inc., an independent energy company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, and development of oil and natural gas properties in the Permian Basin of West Texas, the United States. The company was formerly known as Laredo Petroleum, Inc. and changed its name to Vital Energy, Inc. in January 2023. Vital Energy, Inc. was founded in 2006 and is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

About Kimbell Royalty Partners

Kimbell Royalty Partners, LP, together with its subsidiaries, engages in acquiring and owning mineral and royalty interests in oil and natural gas properties in the United States. It serves as the general partner of the company. The company was incorporated in 2015 and is based in Fort Worth, Texas.