SFL (NYSE:SFL – Get Free Report) and C3is (NASDAQ:CISS – Get Free Report) are both small-cap transportation companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, dividends, profitability and analyst recommendations.
Risk & Volatility
SFL has a beta of 0.67, meaning that its stock price is 33% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, C3is has a beta of 2.15, meaning that its stock price is 115% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Profitability
This table compares SFL and C3is’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| SFL | 14.45% | 12.41% | 3.41% |
| C3is | 5.74% | 19.35% | 11.24% |
Valuation & Earnings
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| SFL | $894.06 million | 1.29 | $130.65 million | $1.01 | 8.25 |
| C3is | $45.18 million | 0.00 | $9.29 million | ($5.87) | -0.12 |
SFL has higher revenue and earnings than C3is. C3is is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SFL, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for SFL and C3is, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| SFL | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 3.33 |
| C3is | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
SFL presently has a consensus price target of $16.00, suggesting a potential upside of 91.96%. Given SFL’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe SFL is more favorable than C3is.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
28.6% of SFL shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 10.5% of C3is shares are owned by institutional investors. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Summary
SFL beats C3is on 11 of the 14 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 C3is
C3is Inc. offers international seaborne transportation services. It provides its services to dry bulk charterers, including national and private industrial users, commodity producers and traders, oil producers, refineries, and commodities traders and producers. The company owns and operates a fleet of two drybulk carriers, which transport major bulks, such as iron ore, coal and grains, as well as minor bulks comprising bauxite, phosphate, and fertilizers, and one Aframax crude oil tanker that transports crude oil. C3is Inc. was founded in 2021 and is based in Athens, Greece.
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