Critical Contrast: Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust (NASDAQ:WHLR) versus CBL & Associates Properties (OTCMKTS:CBLAQ)

Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust (NASDAQ:WHLR) and CBL & Associates Properties (OTCMKTS:CBLAQ) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, profitability, valuation and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust and CBL & Associates Properties’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust	49.20%	-295.94%	7.93%
CBL & Associates Properties	22.57%	41.03%	4.66%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

35.3% of Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust shares are held by institutional investors. 51.9% of Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 20.1% of CBL & Associates Properties shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust and CBL & Associates Properties”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust	$104.57 million	0.03	-$9.58 million	($2,990.49)	0.00
CBL & Associates Properties	$515.56 million	N/A	$58.97 million	N/A	N/A

CBL & Associates Properties has higher revenue and earnings than Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust and CBL & Associates Properties, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust	1	0	0	0	1.00
CBL & Associates Properties	0	0	0	0	0.00

Summary

Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust beats CBL & Associates Properties on 5 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust

Headquartered in Virginia Beach, Virginia, Wheeler Real Estate Investment Trust, Inc. is a fully integrated, self-managed commercial real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on owning and operating income-producing retail properties with a primary focus on grocery-anchored centers.

About CBL & Associates Properties

CBL & Associates Properties, Inc. is a real estate investment trust, which owns and operates retail properties. The firm engages in owning, developing, acquiring, leasing, managing and operating regional shopping malls, open-air centers, community centers and office properties. It operates through Malls and All Other segments. Its properties include Malls, Associated Centers, Community Centers, Office Buildings, Construction Properties and Mortgages. The company was founded on July 13, 1993 and is headquartered in Chattanooga, TN.