Head-To-Head Comparison: Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY) and Smartstop Self Storage REIT (NYSE:SMA)

Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY) and Smartstop Self Storage REIT (NYSE:SMA) are both real estate companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, valuation, profitability and institutional ownership.

Dividends

Weyerhaeuser pays an annual dividend of $0.84 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.5%. Smartstop Self Storage REIT pays an annual dividend of $1.63 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Weyerhaeuser pays out 129.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Smartstop Self Storage REIT pays out 319.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Weyerhaeuser has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Weyerhaeuser and Smartstop Self Storage REIT”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Weyerhaeuser	$6.91 billion	2.47	$324.00 million	$0.65	36.43
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	$281.14 million	6.51	-$1.55 million	$0.51	64.76

Weyerhaeuser has higher revenue and earnings than Smartstop Self Storage REIT. Weyerhaeuser is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Smartstop Self Storage REIT, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Weyerhaeuser and Smartstop Self Storage REIT’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Weyerhaeuser	6.89%	1.49%	0.85%
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	9.68%	2.33%	1.23%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Weyerhaeuser and Smartstop Self Storage REIT, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Weyerhaeuser	0	4	6	1	2.73
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	1	4	4	2	2.64

Weyerhaeuser currently has a consensus price target of $29.00, suggesting a potential upside of 22.47%. Smartstop Self Storage REIT has a consensus price target of $36.64, suggesting a potential upside of 10.93%. Given Weyerhaeuser’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Weyerhaeuser is more favorable than Smartstop Self Storage REIT.

Volatility & Risk

Weyerhaeuser has a beta of 0.89, meaning that its stock price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Smartstop Self Storage REIT has a beta of 0.5, meaning that its stock price is 50% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

83.0% of Weyerhaeuser shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.3% of Weyerhaeuser shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 5.7% of Smartstop Self Storage REIT shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Summary

Weyerhaeuser beats Smartstop Self Storage REIT on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Weyerhaeuser

Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest private owners of timberlands, began operations in 1900. We own or control approximately 11 million acres of timberlands in the U.S. and manage additional timberlands under long-term licenses in Canada. We manage these timberlands on a sustainable basis in compliance with internationally recognized forestry standards. We are also one of the largest manufacturers of wood products in North America. Our company is a real estate investment trust. In 2022, we generated $10.2 billion in net sales and employed approximately 9,200 people who serve customers worldwide. Our common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol WY.

About Smartstop Self Storage REIT

Symmetry Medical Inc. (Symmetry) is a medical device solutions company, including surgical instruments, orthopedic implants, and sterilization cases and trays. The Company designs, develops and offers worldwide production and supply chain capabilities for these products to customers in the orthopedic industry, and other medical device markets (including but not limited to arthroscopy, dental, laparoscopy, osteobiologic, and endoscopy segments). It also manufactures specialized non-healthcare products, primarily in the aerospace industry. The Company operates in two segments: original equipment manufacturer (OEM) solutions and symmetry surgical. On August 15, 2011, the Company acquired PSC Industries, Inc’s Olsen Medical division. On December 29, 2011 it acquired the surgical instruments product portfolio from Codman & Shurtleff, Inc., a Johnson & Johnson Company.