Diana Shipping (NYSE:DSX – Get Free Report) and Tsakos Energy Navigation (NYSE:TEN – Get Free Report) are both small-cap transportation companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, risk and dividends.
Dividends
Diana Shipping pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.5%. Tsakos Energy Navigation pays an annual dividend of $1.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.3%. Diana Shipping pays out 36.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Tsakos Energy Navigation pays out 16.3% 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. Tsakos Energy Navigation is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.
Profitability
This table compares Diana Shipping and Tsakos Energy Navigation’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Diana Shipping | 8.35% | 3.60% | 1.54% |
| Tsakos Energy Navigation | 24.81% | 17.44% | 8.20% |
Analyst Recommendations
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Diana Shipping | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
| Tsakos Energy Navigation | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2.25 |
Tsakos Energy Navigation has a consensus target price of $29.50, indicating a potential downside of 30.77%. Given Tsakos Energy Navigation’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Tsakos Energy Navigation is more favorable than Diana Shipping.
Insider & Institutional Ownership
48.7% of Diana Shipping shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 19.2% of Tsakos Energy Navigation shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Tsakos Energy Navigation shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Valuation and Earnings
This table compares Diana Shipping and Tsakos Energy Navigation”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Diana Shipping | $213.54 million | 1.50 | $17.83 million | $0.11 | 23.59 |
| Tsakos Energy Navigation | $798.69 million | 1.61 | $160.90 million | $6.14 | 6.94 |
Tsakos Energy Navigation has higher revenue and earnings than Diana Shipping. Tsakos Energy Navigation is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Diana Shipping, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Risk & Volatility
Diana Shipping has a beta of 0.53, meaning that its stock price is 47% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Tsakos Energy Navigation has a beta of -0.27, meaning that its stock price is 127% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Tsakos Energy Navigation beats Diana Shipping on 13 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Diana Shipping
Diana Shipping Inc. provides shipping transportation services. The company transports a range of dry bulk cargoes, including commodities, such as iron ore, coal, grain, and other materials in shipping routes worldwide. As of March 1, 2024, it operated a fleet of 38 dry bulk vessels, including 4 Newcastlemax, 8 Capesize, 5 Post-Panamax, 6 Kamsarmax, 9 Ultramax, and 6 Panamax. The company was formerly known as Diana Shipping Investments Corp. and changed its name to Diana Shipping Inc. in February 2005. Diana Shipping Inc. was incorporated in 1999 and is based in Athens, Greece.
About Tsakos Energy Navigation
Tsakos Energy Navigation Ltd. engages in the provision of seaborne crude oil and petroleum product transportation services. Its activities include the operation of crude tankers, product tankers, and liquefied natural gas carriers. The company was founded by Nikolas P. Tsakos and Michael Gordon Jolliffee in July 1993 and is headquartered in Athens, Greece.
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