Critical Review: LTC Properties (NYSE:LTC) & National Healthcare Properties (NASDAQ:NHP)

LTC Properties (NYSE:LTC) and National Healthcare Properties (NASDAQ:NHP) are both real estate companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, analyst recommendations, risk, dividends, earnings and valuation.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

69.3% of LTC Properties shares are held by institutional investors. 2.2% of LTC Properties shares are held by 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.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares LTC Properties and National Healthcare Properties”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
LTC Properties	$262.85 million	8.28	$117.97 million	$2.71	14.89
National Healthcare Properties	$342.28 million	3.61	-$57.62 million	($0.13)	-130.46

LTC Properties has higher earnings, but lower revenue than National Healthcare Properties. National Healthcare Properties is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than LTC Properties, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares LTC Properties and National Healthcare Properties’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
LTC Properties	38.84%	11.42%	6.45%
National Healthcare Properties	-13.04%	-6.22%	-2.52%

Dividends

LTC Properties pays an annual dividend of $2.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.6%. National Healthcare Properties pays an annual dividend of $0.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. LTC Properties pays out 84.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. National Healthcare Properties pays out -230.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings and target prices for LTC Properties and National Healthcare Properties, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
LTC Properties	0	4	4	0	2.50
National Healthcare Properties	1	5	6	0	2.42

LTC Properties currently has a consensus price target of $41.40, indicating a potential upside of 2.58%. National Healthcare Properties has a consensus price target of $18.00, indicating a potential upside of 6.13%. Given National Healthcare Properties’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe National Healthcare Properties is more favorable than LTC Properties.

Summary

LTC Properties beats National Healthcare Properties on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About LTC Properties

LTC Properties, Inc. is a real estate investment trust, which engages in managing seniors housing and health care properties. It operates through the Texas, Michigan, Florida, Wisconsin, Colorado, and Remaining States geographic segments. The company was founded by Andre C. Dimitriadis on May 12, 1992 and is headquartered in Westlake Village, CA.

About National Healthcare Properties

National Healthcare Properties Inc. is a self-managed real estate investment trust focused on acquiring, owning and investing in a diversified portfolio of healthcare real estate, with an emphasis on providing senior housing. National Healthcare Properties Inc. is based in NEW YORK.