Financial Survey: Flex LNG (NYSE:FLNG) vs. Inplay Oil Cp (OTCMKTS:IPOOF)

Inplay Oil Cp (OTCMKTS:IPOOF) and Flex LNG (NYSE:FLNG) are both small-cap energy companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, risk, profitability, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Profitability

This table compares Inplay Oil Cp and Flex LNG’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Inplay Oil Cp	-11.69%	-1.00%	-0.32%
Flex LNG	22.26%	12.15%	3.37%

Dividends

Inplay Oil Cp pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.0%. Flex LNG pays an annual dividend of $3.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 9.7%. Inplay Oil Cp pays out -72.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Flex LNG pays out 214.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Risk & Volatility

Inplay Oil Cp has a beta of 0.43, meaning that its stock price is 57% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Flex LNG has a beta of 0.2, meaning that its stock price is 80% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Inplay Oil Cp and Flex LNG, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Inplay Oil Cp	1	0	0	1	2.50
Flex LNG	2	2	0	0	1.50

Flex LNG has a consensus target price of $24.00, indicating a potential downside of 22.19%. Given Flex LNG’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Flex LNG is more favorable than Inplay Oil Cp.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Inplay Oil Cp and Flex LNG”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Inplay Oil Cp	$208.55 million	1.46	-$5.61 million	($1.05)	-10.38
Flex LNG	$347.64 million	4.80	$74.82 million	$1.40	22.03

Flex LNG has higher revenue and earnings than Inplay Oil Cp. Inplay Oil Cp is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Flex LNG, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Flex LNG beats Inplay Oil Cp on 10 of the 14 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Inplay Oil Cp

InPlay Oil Corp. engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of petroleum and natural gas properties in Canada. The company produces and sells crude oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids. It focuses on light oil asset base located in West Central, Alberta. InPlay Oil Corp. is headquartered in Calgary, Canada.

About Flex LNG

FLEX LNG Ltd. engages in the seaborne transportation of liquefied natural gas (LPG) through the ownership and operation of LNG carriers. The company was founded by Philip Eystein Fjeld, Trym Tveitnes and Jostein Ueland in September 2006 and is headquartered in Hamilton, Bermuda.