Is PTEN or HP the better stock?

"Better" depends on your goal, and these two are not alike. PTEN is the larger company by market cap ($4.65B vs $4.41B). PTEN has been more active on our scanner (135 vs 78 alerts in 30 days). HP has the smaller float (95.4M vs 373.0M), which tends to mean sharper, more volatile moves. Those are the measured differences, not a recommendation, and nothing here is investment advice.

What is the difference between PTEN and HP?

The differences that matter: they are similar in size ($4.65B vs $4.41B); they trade at very different share prices ($12.27 vs $43.95); PTEN sits at 90% of its 52-week range against 96% for HP; our scanner flagged PTEN 135 times in the last 30 days against 78 for HP. Everything above is measured from the latest completed session and SEC filings.

Which of PTEN and HP is more active right now?

Right now PTEN is at about 0.7x its normal volume and HP is at about 0.8x, so HP is the one drawing unusual attention today. Relative volume (RVOL) compares a stock's volume to its own recent average, so it reads the same way for a megacap and a microcap and is the quickest way to tell which of two similar names is actually in play.

Is this comparison data live?

Prices and % changes are anchored to the latest completed session and split-adjusted, so a reverse split never shows as a fake move. Float is estimated from SEC filings and refreshed as new filings publish.

Compare

PTEN vs HP

TheDesperateTrader.com· Side-by-side stock comparison

$PTEN vs $HP head to head: price, market cap, valuation, dividend, free float, relative volume and how actively each trades. The bigger value in the size rows is bolded. Tap either ticker for its live chart, full ownership breakdown and real-time alerts.

$PTENPatterson-UTI Energy Inc

$HPHelmerich & Payne, Inc.

$12.27

Price

$43.95

+1.7%

Day change

+0.4%

$4.65B

Market cap

$4.41B

9.23

P/E ratio

—

3.26%

Dividend yield

2.28%

373.0M

Free float

95.4M

99.9%

Institutional

99.9%

8.6M

Avg volume

1.2M

0.7x

Rel. volume

0.8x

90% of 52w

52-week range

96% of 52w

135

Scanner alerts 30d

DRILLING OIL & GAS WELLS

Sector

DRILLING OIL & GAS WELLS

PTEN vs HP: the quick read

·PTEN is the larger company by market cap ($4.65B vs $4.41B).
·PTEN has been more active on our scanner (135 vs 78 alerts in 30 days).
·HP has the smaller float (95.4M vs 373.0M), which tends to mean sharper, more volatile moves.
·Both are drilling oil & gas wells names, so this is a like-for-like comparison and sector news tends to move them together.
·Both stay busy on our scanner, 135 and 78 unusual-volume alerts over 30 days, so neither is the quiet one here.
·They are closely matched in size, within 5% of each other on market cap, which makes the rest of this table the interesting part.
·Both are trading in the upper quarter of their 52-week range, so neither is a pullback candidate right now.
·Both pay a dividend, so this is one of the few pairs here where yield is a fair tiebreaker.

Objective differences only. Not investment advice.

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Frequently asked questions

Everything you need to know comparing PTEN and HP on TheDesperateTrader.

Is PTEN or HP the better stock?: "Better" depends on your goal, and these two are not alike. PTEN is the larger company by market cap ($4.65B vs $4.41B). PTEN has been more active on our scanner (135 vs 78 alerts in 30 days). HP has the smaller float (95.4M vs 373.0M), which tends to mean sharper, more volatile moves. Those are the measured differences, not a recommendation, and nothing here is investment advice.
What is the difference between PTEN and HP?: The differences that matter: they are similar in size ($4.65B vs $4.41B); they trade at very different share prices ($12.27 vs $43.95); PTEN sits at 90% of its 52-week range against 96% for HP; our scanner flagged PTEN 135 times in the last 30 days against 78 for HP. Everything above is measured from the latest completed session and SEC filings.
Which of PTEN and HP is more active right now?: Right now PTEN is at about 0.7x its normal volume and HP is at about 0.8x, so HP is the one drawing unusual attention today. Relative volume (RVOL) compares a stock's volume to its own recent average, so it reads the same way for a megacap and a microcap and is the quickest way to tell which of two similar names is actually in play.
Is this comparison data live?: Prices and % changes are anchored to the latest completed session and split-adjusted, so a reverse split never shows as a fake move. Float is estimated from SEC filings and refreshed as new filings publish.

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