HNRG vs SSL vs SO Stock Comparison

Hallador Energy, Sasol and Southern Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
HNRG Hallador Energy Co
$10.99 -25.3% 1M -46.7% 1Y
Market cap
$559.23M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$452.10M
Div. yield
–
Independent Power Producers Utilities
3 wins
SSL Sasol Ltd
$17.42 +24.2% 1M +165.5% 1Y
Market cap
$10.83B
P/E
15.3x
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
–
Integrated Oil and Gas Energy
3 wins
SO Southern Co
$92.56 +11.7% 1M -3.5% 1Y
Market cap
$105.29B
P/E
22.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$30.18B
Div. yield
0.03%
Regulated Electric Utilities Utilities
4 wins

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Southern leads on 4 of the 12 questions below (Southern 4, Sasol 3, Hallador Energy 3). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionHNRGSSLSOLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $559.23M $10.83B $105.29B SO
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -613.2x 15.3x 22.6x SSL
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 5.3x 19.1x SSL
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +7.9% — +6.4% HNRG
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -0.2% — 15.4% SO
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — — 5.1% –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 2.4x — 5.3x HNRG
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.00% 0.03% –
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -46.7% +165.5% -3.5% SSL
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years +27.6%/yr +0.4%/yr +8.1%/yr HNRG
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 64.1% 54.1% 17.9% SO
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 37/100 — 43/100 SO

Percentile Scorecard

HNRGSSLSO

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisHNRGSSLSO
Valuation 44 #14 of 24 95 #6 of 99 36 #43 of 67
Growth 18 #19 of 23 – 53 #31 of 65
Profitability 46 #13 of 23 – 78 #15 of 64
Financial Health 57 #11 of 24 52 #50 of 102 35 #42 of 64
Shareholder Returns 21 #16 of 20 – 15 #57 of 67
Overall 37 – 43
  • HNRG ranked among 24 companies in Power Generation
  • SSL ranked among 103 companies in Oil and Gas Upstream
  • SO ranked among 67 companies in Regulated Utilities

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodHNRGSSLSOSPY
1 month -25.3%+24.2%+11.7% -0.8%
3 months -27.7%+52.3%-4.1% +3.5%
6 months -32.9%+36.9%-1.3% +7.0%
Year to date -42.3%+167.6%+6.1% +12.2%
1 year -46.7%+165.5%-3.5% +13.0%
3 years -23.9%+32.9%+39.1% +86.3%
3 years, per year -8.7%+9.9%+11.6% +23.1%
5 years +238.2%+2.0%+47.8% +68.6%
5 years, per year +27.6%+0.4%+8.1% +11.0%
10 years +22.8%-37.0%+81.6% +258.0%
10 years, per year +2.1%-4.5%+6.1% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureHNRGSSLSOSPY
Volatility, 1Y 64.1%54.1%17.9% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 65.1%55.7%17.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 1.71-0.76-0.23 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.733.06-0.19 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -71.1%-89.4%-23.3% -25.4%
From 52-week high -53.8%-3.3%-6.6% -1.8%
52-week high $23.81$18.02$99.11 $779.14
52-week low $10.99$6.00$82.35 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleHNRGSSLSO
P/E now vs peer median -568.0xmedian 24.4x 15.3xmedian 13.5x 22.6xmedian 20.8x
P/S now vs peer median 1.1xmedian 2.7x 0.7xmedian 2.1x 3.5xmedian 2.9x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 92.2xmedian 11.3x —median 5.9x 13.1xmedian 13.1x
P/FCF now vs peer median -10.3xmedian 12.9x 3.6xmedian 11.0x -32.6xmedian 36.7x
P/B now vs peer median 2.7xmedian 2.1x 1.1xmedian 1.5x 2.5xmedian 1.7x
PEG now vs peer median 21.68median 0.59 —median 2.27 0.71median 2.23

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsHNRGSSLSO
Revenue $452.10M – $30.18B
Gross profit – – $25.14B
Operating income $16.94M – $7.31B
Net income -$912.00K – $4.66B
Free cash flow -$50.46M – -$3.27B
R&D $468.00K – –
EPS (diluted) $-0.02 – $4.08
Cash & equivalents $28.98M $2.64B $2.98B
Total debt $158.45M $6.66B $295.00B
Shares (diluted) 47.13M 642.00M 1.14B
Enterprise value $470.74M -$233.82M $96.35B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricHNRGSSLSO
P/E -568.0x 15.3x 22.6x
P/FCF -10.3x 3.6x -32.6x
P/Operating cash flow 18.5x – 10.0x
P/S 1.1x 0.7x 3.5x
P/B 2.7x 1.1x 2.5x
P/Tangible book 2.7x 1.1x 2.5x
EV/EBITDA 92.2x – 13.1x
EV/EBIT 31.4x – 24.5x
EV/Revenue 1.2x – 5.9x
EV/FCF -10.5x – -54.8x
EV/Operating cash flow 19.0x – 16.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 21.68 – 0.71

Growth

14 metrics
MetricHNRGSSLSO
Revenue growth (1Y) 7.9% – 6.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -8.3% – 3.0%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – 5.3%
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – 1.6%
Operating income growth (1Y) 109.0% – 1.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -43.0% – 14.7%
Net income growth (1Y) 99.5% – 8.7%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -26.2% – 16.2%
EPS growth (1Y) 99.6% – 5.6%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -26.2% – 31.9%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -63.1% – 15.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -34.2% – 23.7%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -295.8% – -152.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -50.2% – -3.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricHNRGSSLSO
Gross margin – – 83.3%
EBITDA margin 1.3% – 45.2%
Operating margin 3.7% – 24.2%
Pretax margin -0.2% – 17.4%
Net margin -0.2% – 15.4%
FCF margin -11.2% – -10.8%
Operating cash flow margin 6.2% – 35.3%
Return on equity 0.5% – 9.2%
Return on assets 0.2% – 2.9%
Return on invested capital – – 5.1%
Return on capital employed 6.8% – 5.1%
Asset turnover 1.0x – 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -30.7x – 2.3x
Stock comp / revenue 1.0% – –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricHNRGSSLSO
Debt / assets 9.2% 30.1% 46.6%
Debt / equity 0.2x 0.6x 1.8x
Net debt / EBITDA 2.4x – 5.3x
Debt / FCF -0.9x – -23.1x
Liabilities / assets 59.3% 53.3% 73.9%
Equity / assets 40.7% 46.7% 26.1%
Interest coverage 1.0x – 2.3x
Current ratio 0.7x 1.8x 0.8x
Quick ratio 0.2x 1.2x 0.4x
Cash ratio 0.1x 0.6x 0.2x
Altman Z-score 1.85 – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricHNRGSSLSO
Dividend yield – – 3.2%
Net buyback yield -10.4% – –
Shareholder yield -10.4% 0.0% 3.2%
Payout ratio (earnings) – – 66.6%
Payout ratio (FCF) – – -94.8%
Dividend growth (1Y) – – 4.7%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – – 1.2%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusHNRGSSLSO
Forward P/E – 5.3xFY2027 19.1xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-0.35FY2026 $3.26FY2027 $4.84FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -136.5%FY2026 +37.0%FY2027 +12.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – -24.5% -3.1%
Revenue, next fiscal year $474.13MFY2026 $16.51BFY2027 $31.54BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +1.0%FY2026 -2.3%FY2027 +6.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +7.3% +7.4% +8.8%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersHNRGSSLSO
Held by institutions 76.3% 4.7% 72.5%
Institutions holding 171 174 2,363
Change in shares held, QoQ +5.2% -7.6% +5.7%
Institutions buying 86 111 1,248
Institutions selling 52 45 724
Buyers to sellers 1.65 2.47 1.72

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

HNRGSSLSO
HNRG 1.00 -0.02 -0.10
SSL -0.02 1.00 0.12
SO -0.10 0.12 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, HNRG, SSL and SO?

Southern (SO) is the largest by market capitalisation: Hallador Energy (HNRG) $559.23M, Sasol (SSL) $10.83B, Southern (SO) $105.29B.

Which stock is cheaper, HNRG, SSL and SO?

Sasol (SSL) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Hallador Energy (HNRG) -613.2x, Sasol (SSL) 15.3x, Southern (SO) 22.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Sasol (SSL) is cheapest (Sasol (SSL) 5.3x, Southern (SO) 19.1x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Hallador Energy (HNRG) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Hallador Energy (HNRG) +7.9%, Southern (SO) +6.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Southern (SO) has the highest net margin (Hallador Energy (HNRG) -0.2%, Southern (SO) 15.4%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Sasol (SSL) returned the most: Hallador Energy (HNRG) -46.7%, Sasol (SSL) +165.5%, Southern (SO) -3.5%. Over five years, Hallador Energy (HNRG) compounded fastest (Hallador Energy (HNRG) +27.6%/yr, Sasol (SSL) +0.4%/yr, Southern (SO) +8.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Only one of these companies pays a dividend: Hallador Energy (HNRG) 0.00%, Sasol (SSL) 0.00%, Southern (SO) 0.03%. Hallador Energy (HNRG) and Sasol (SSL) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Southern (SO) has been the steadiest (Hallador Energy (HNRG) 64.1%, Sasol (SSL) 54.1%, Southern (SO) 17.9%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, HNRG, SSL and SO?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Southern (SO) leads on 4. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.