Critical Comparison: Acadia Realty Trust (NYSE:AKR) vs. Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG)

Acadia Realty Trust (NYSE:AKR) and Regency Centers (NASDAQ:REG) are both real estate companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their dividends, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, earnings and profitability.

Dividends

Acadia Realty Trust pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Regency Centers pays an annual dividend of $3.02 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. Acadia Realty Trust pays out 285.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Regency Centers pays out 108.2% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Acadia Realty Trust has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years and Regency Centers has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Regency Centers is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and price targets for Acadia Realty Trust and Regency Centers, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Acadia Realty Trust	0	3	4	1	2.75
Regency Centers	0	8	8	1	2.59

Acadia Realty Trust presently has a consensus price target of $23.40, indicating a potential upside of 14.85%. Regency Centers has a consensus price target of $83.26, indicating a potential upside of 9.62%. Given Acadia Realty Trust’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe Acadia Realty Trust is more favorable than Regency Centers.

Volatility & Risk

Acadia Realty Trust has a beta of 1.11, indicating that its stock price is 11% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Regency Centers has a beta of 0.8, indicating that its stock price is 20% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

97.7% of Acadia Realty Trust shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 96.1% of Regency Centers shares are held by institutional investors. 3.1% of Acadia Realty Trust shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of Regency Centers shares are held 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.

Profitability

This table compares Acadia Realty Trust and Regency Centers’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Acadia Realty Trust	10.23%	1.54%	0.87%
Regency Centers	31.85%	8.18%	4.34%

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Acadia Realty Trust and Regency Centers”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Acadia Realty Trust	$410.76 million	6.85	$16.90 million	$0.28	72.77
Regency Centers	$1.55 billion	8.95	$527.46 million	$2.79	27.23

Regency Centers has higher revenue and earnings than Acadia Realty Trust. Regency Centers is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Acadia Realty Trust, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Regency Centers beats Acadia Realty Trust on 11 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Acadia Realty Trust

Acadia Realty Trust is an equity real estate investment trust that owns, operates and invests in retail properties. Its portfolio includes shopping centers and urban street-retail properties, with tenants spanning a range of retail and service businesses. The company focuses on high-barrier-to-entry markets in the United States, including major metropolitan areas. It combines a portfolio of directly owned properties with investment funds through which it partners on additional real estate investments.

About Regency Centers

Regency Centers Corporation is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates, develops and redevelops shopping centers, with a focus on centers anchored by grocery stores. Its properties typically combine grocery retailers with restaurants, service businesses and other retail tenants. Founded in 1963, the company serves communities across the United States, concentrating on suburban locations with strong surrounding neighborhoods. Regency also works with tenants and property partners to maintain and enhance its centers.