American Tower (NYSE:AMT – Get Free Report) and Douglas Emmett (NYSE:DEI – Get Free Report) are both real estate companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends and institutional ownership.
Dividends
American Tower pays an annual dividend of $7.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Douglas Emmett pays an annual dividend of $0.76 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.4%. American Tower pays out 98.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Douglas Emmett pays out -447.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. American Tower has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Douglas Emmett is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.
Volatility and Risk
American Tower has a beta of 0.91, suggesting that its share price is 9% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Douglas Emmett has a beta of 1.15, suggesting that its share price is 15% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Valuation and Earnings
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| American Tower | $10.82 billion | 7.48 | $2.53 billion | $7.27 | 23.91 |
| Douglas Emmett | $1.00 billion | 1.97 | $16.27 million | ($0.17) | -69.45 |
American Tower has higher revenue and earnings than Douglas Emmett. Douglas Emmett is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than American Tower, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares American Tower and Douglas Emmett’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| American Tower | 31.08% | 32.76% | 5.36% |
| Douglas Emmett | -2.59% | -0.74% | -0.28% |
Insider & Institutional Ownership
92.7% of American Tower shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.4% of Douglas Emmett shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.1% of American Tower shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 13.0% of Douglas Emmett shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current recommendations for American Tower and Douglas Emmett, as reported by MarketBeat.com.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| American Tower | 0 | 3 | 16 | 1 | 2.90 |
| Douglas Emmett | 1 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 2.00 |
American Tower currently has a consensus price target of $215.19, suggesting a potential upside of 23.80%. Douglas Emmett has a consensus price target of $13.57, suggesting a potential upside of 14.95%. Given American Tower’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe American Tower is more favorable than Douglas Emmett.
Summary
American Tower beats Douglas Emmett on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.
About American Tower
American Tower, one of the largest global REITs, is a leading independent owner, operator and developer of multitenant communications real estate with a portfolio of over 224,000 communications sites and a highly interconnected footprint of U.S. data center facilities.
About Douglas Emmett
Douglas Emmett, Inc. (DEI) is a fully integrated, self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT), and one of the largest owners and operators of high-quality office and multifamily properties located in the premier coastal submarkets of Los Angeles and Honolulu. Douglas Emmett focuses on owning and acquiring a substantial share of top-tier office properties and premier multifamily communities in neighborhoods that possess significant supply constraints, high-end executive housing and key lifestyle amenities.
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