Comparing Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) and Safehold (NYSE:SAFE)

Equity Lifestyle Properties (NYSE:ELS) and Safehold (NYSE:SAFE) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, profitability, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Equity Lifestyle Properties and Safehold”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Equity Lifestyle Properties	$1.44 billion	8.34	$367.01 million	$1.99	31.12
Safehold	$374.10 million	3.03	$105.76 million	$1.43	11.06

Equity Lifestyle Properties has higher revenue and earnings than Safehold. Safehold is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Equity Lifestyle Properties, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Equity Lifestyle Properties and Safehold, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Equity Lifestyle Properties	0	4	7	1	2.75
Safehold	0	7	3	0	2.30

Equity Lifestyle Properties currently has a consensus price target of $70.32, indicating a potential upside of 13.54%. Safehold has a consensus price target of $19.89, indicating a potential upside of 25.79%. Given Safehold’s higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Safehold is more favorable than Equity Lifestyle Properties.

Dividends

Equity Lifestyle Properties pays an annual dividend of $2.06 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Safehold pays an annual dividend of $0.70 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.4%. Equity Lifestyle Properties pays out 103.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Safehold pays out 49.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Equity Lifestyle Properties has increased its dividend for 21 consecutive years and Safehold has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Safehold is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Volatility and Risk

Equity Lifestyle Properties has a beta of 0.71, suggesting that its stock price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Safehold has a beta of 1.85, suggesting that its stock price is 85% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Equity Lifestyle Properties and Safehold’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Equity Lifestyle Properties	24.97%	20.99%	6.71%
Safehold	27.45%	4.70%	1.61%

Institutional & Insider Ownership

97.2% of Equity Lifestyle Properties shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 70.4% of Safehold shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.4% of Equity Lifestyle Properties shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.5% of Safehold shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Equity Lifestyle Properties beats Safehold on 12 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Equity Lifestyle Properties

Equity LifeStyle Properties, Inc. is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the ownership and operation of lifestyle-oriented properties consisting primarily of manufactured home, and recreational vehicle communities. It operates through the following segments: Property Operations and Home Sales and Rentals Operations. The Property Operations segment owns and operates land lease properties. The Home Sales and Rentals Operations segment purchases, sells, and leases homes. The company was founded by James M. Hankins in December 1992 and is headquartered in Chicago, IL.

About Safehold

Safehold Inc. (NYSE: SAFE) is revolutionizing real estate ownership by providing a new and better way for owners to unlock the value of the land beneath their buildings. Having created the modern ground lease industry in 2017, Safehold continues to help owners of high quality multifamily, office, industrial, hospitality, student housing, life science and mixed-use properties generate higher returns with less risk. The Company, which is taxed as a real estate investment trust (REIT), seeks to deliver safe, growing income and long-term capital appreciation to its shareholders.