Head-To-Head Comparison: MV Oil Trust (NYSE:MVO) & Mexco Energy (NYSE:MXC)

Mexco Energy (NYSE:MXC) and MV Oil Trust (NYSE:MVO) are both small-cap energy companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, risk, profitability, earnings, institutional ownership and dividends.

Volatility and Risk

Mexco Energy has a beta of 0.35, meaning that its share price is 65% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, MV Oil Trust has a beta of -0.16, meaning that its share price is 116% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

5.9% of Mexco Energy shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 3.5% of MV Oil Trust shares are held by institutional investors. 55.5% of Mexco Energy shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Mexco Energy and MV Oil Trust’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mexco Energy	18.73%	7.57%	6.94%
MV Oil Trust	91.22%	N/A	385.23%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Mexco Energy and MV Oil Trust”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mexco Energy	$6.79 million	3.32	$1.35 million	$0.75	14.69
MV Oil Trust	$11.31 million	0.61	$10.41 million	$0.82	0.73

MV Oil Trust has higher revenue and earnings than Mexco Energy. MV Oil Trust is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Mexco Energy, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Mexco Energy pays an annual dividend of $0.10 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.9%. MV Oil Trust pays an annual dividend of $2.38 per share and has a dividend yield of 399.7%. Mexco Energy pays out 13.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. MV Oil Trust pays out 290.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Mexco Energy and MV Oil Trust, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mexco Energy	0	0	0	0	0.00
MV Oil Trust	1	0	0	0	1.00

About Mexco Energy

Mexco Energy Corporation, an independent oil and gas company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of natural gas, crude oil, condensate, and natural gas liquids in the United States. It owns partial interests in approximately 6,400 gross producing wells located in the states of Texas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Alabama, Mississippi, Arkansas, Wyoming, Kansas, Colorado, Montana, Virginia, North Dakota, and Ohio. It also owned leasehold mineral, royalty, and other interests in approximately 2,768 net acres. The company was formerly known as Miller Oil Company and changed its name to Mexco Energy Corporation in April 1980. Mexco Energy Corporation was incorporated in 1972 and is based in Midland, Texas.

About MV Oil Trust

MV Oil Trust acquires and holds term net profits interests in the oil and natural gas properties of MV Partners, LLC. Its properties wells located in the Mid-Continent region in the states of Kansas and Colorado. MV Oil Trust was incorporated in 2006 and is based in Houston, Texas.