Which Is a Better Investment, Helmerich & Payne, Inc. or Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. Stock?

By AAII Staff
September 02, 2026
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Sifting through countless of stocks in the Energy Equipment & Services industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy or Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc.

Helmerich & Payne, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, provides drilling solutions and technologies for oil and gas exploration and production companies. The company operates through North America Solutions, Offshore Solutions, and International Solutions segments. The North America Solutions segment conducts operations primarily in Texas. The Offshore Solutions segment has drilling operations in Louisiana and in U.S. federal waters the North Sea and Norwegian Sea off the coast of Norway, Caspian Sea and other international waters. The International Solutions segment conducts drilling operations in Saudi Arabia, Argentina, Bahrain, Oman, Germany, and Kuwait. The company focuses on developing, promoting, and commercializing technologies designed to enhance the drilling operations, as well as wellbore quality and placement. It also owns and operates commercial real estate properties. In addition, the company’s real estate investments include a shopping center. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. was founded in 1920 and is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides drilling and completion services to oil and natural gas exploration and production companies in the United States, Canada, Colombia, and internationally. It operates through three segments: Drilling Services, Completion Services, and Drilling Products. The Contract Drilling Services segment engages in the provision of contract and directional drilling, and measurement-while-drilling (MWD) services in onshore oil and natural gas basins; supply and rental of downhole performance motors, such as Mpact drilling motors, and Mpower MWD systems; electrical controls and automation to the energy, marine, and mining industries; rig fleet evaluation; and drilling technology service. This segment also provides software and services, such as MWD Survey Fault Detection, Isolation and Recovery (FDIR) services, a data analytics technology to analyze MWD survey data in real-time and identify the position of a well; HiFi Nav, which enhances FDIR by targeting improved vertical placement of the directional well within the reservoir; and HiFi Guidance that utilizes trajectory optimization to determine optimal steering recommendations and placement within the reservoir. The Completion Services segment offers services for hydraulic fracturing, wireline and pumping, completion support, equipment, materials, and cementing, as well as involved in the power solutions natural gas fueling, and last mile logistics and storage businesses. The Drilling Products segment engages in the design, manufacture, sale, and rental of matrix and steel-bodied polycrystalline diamond compact drill bits. It also rents oilfield tools; and offers specialized services for land-based oil and natural gas drilling, completion, and workover activities. The company was founded in 1978 and is headquartered in Houston, Texas.

Latest Energy Equipment & Services and Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. Stock News

As of September 1, 2026, Helmerich & Payne, Inc. had a $4.6 billion market capitalization, compared to the Energy Equipment & Services median of $1.4 million. Helmerich & Payne, Inc.’s stock is up 66.1% in 2026, up 15.1% in the previous five trading days and up 121.21% in the past year.

Currently, Helmerich & Payne, Inc. does not have a price-earnings ratio. Helmerich & Payne, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $4.0 billion with a -3.4% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was -0.6%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $-0.137 per share for the current fiscal year. Helmerich & Payne, Inc. currently has a 2.2% dividend yield.

As of September 1, 2026, Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. had a $4.9 billion market cap, putting it in the 67th percentile of all stocks. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc.’s stock is up 115.2% in 2026, up 11.9% in the previous five trading days and up 120.14% in the past year.

Currently, Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. does not have a price-earnings ratio. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $4.7 billion with a -1.9% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 0.7%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $-0.021 per share for the current fiscal year. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. currently has a 3.1% dividend yield.

How We Compare Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc. Stock Value Grades

Company Ticker Value
Helmerich & Payne, Inc. HP B
Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. PTEN B

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a Value Score of 72, which is Value. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a Value Score of 66, which is Value.

The Value Stock Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Value Grade breakdown above, both Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc. have a Value Grade of B. For investors who focus solely on a company’s valuation, you will need to conduct further research into both of these companies’ other metrics to see if they could be good additions to your portfolio. It’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc. Growth Grades

Company Ticker Growth
Helmerich & Payne, Inc. HP B
Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. PTEN C

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a Growth Score of 64, which is Strong. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a Growth Score of 59, which is Average.

The Growth Grade Winner: Helmerich & Payne, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Growth Grade breakdown above, Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a more attractive growth grade than Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc.. For investors who focus solely on how a company is growing relative to other companies in the same industry, Helmerich & Payne, Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolio. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company Ticker Earnings Estimate
Helmerich & Payne, Inc. HP F
Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. PTEN A

Earnings estimate revisions scores consider the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, positive surprises beget further positive surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Helmerich & Payne, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 4, which is Very Negative. Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 84, which is Very Positive.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than Helmerich & Payne, Inc.. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Don’t Forget Your Free Special Report on How A+ Grades Can Help You Make Investment Decisions

Other Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc. Grades

In addition to Value, Growth and Estimate Revisions, A+ Investor also provides grades for Momentum and Quality.

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Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the ranking of key metrics. Specifically, the quality grade is the percentile rank of the composite of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and F-Score.

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy or Inc. Stock?

Overall, Helmerich & Payne, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 72, Growth Score of 64 and Estimate Revisions Score of 4.

Patterson-UTI Energy, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 66, Growth Score of 59 and Estimate Revisions Score of 84.

Comparing Helmerich & Payne, Inc., Patterson-UTI Energy and Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

Learn More About A+ Investor

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.



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