Critical Analysis: Four Corners Property Trust (NYSE:FCPT) versus Postal Realty Trust (NYSE:PSTL)

Postal Realty Trust (NYSE:PSTL) and Four Corners Property Trust (NYSE:FCPT) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, risk, valuation, earnings and analyst recommendations.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

57.9% of Postal Realty Trust shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.7% of Four Corners Property Trust shares are held by institutional investors. 13.7% of Postal Realty Trust shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of Four Corners Property Trust shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Postal Realty Trust and Four Corners Property Trust”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Postal Realty Trust	$95.82 million	5.22	$14.15 million	$0.46	39.61
Four Corners Property Trust	$294.13 million	8.96	$112.36 million	$1.10	21.83

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

Dividends

Postal Realty Trust pays an annual dividend of $0.98 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.4%. Four Corners Property Trust pays an annual dividend of $1.47 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.1%. Postal Realty Trust pays out 213.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Four Corners Property Trust pays out 133.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Postal Realty Trust has raised its dividend for 3 consecutive years and Four Corners Property Trust has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Four Corners Property Trust is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Risk & Volatility

Postal Realty Trust has a beta of 0.71, indicating that its share price is 29% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Four Corners Property Trust has a beta of 0.82, indicating that its share price is 18% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Postal Realty Trust and Four Corners Property Trust, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Postal Realty Trust	0	2	4	0	2.67
Four Corners Property Trust	0	5	3	0	2.38

Postal Realty Trust presently has a consensus target price of $20.44, indicating a potential upside of 12.16%. Four Corners Property Trust has a consensus target price of $27.86, indicating a potential upside of 16.00%. Given Four Corners Property Trust’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Four Corners Property Trust is more favorable than Postal Realty Trust.

Profitability

This table compares Postal Realty Trust and Four Corners Property Trust’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Postal Realty Trust	14.77%	4.20%	1.99%
Four Corners Property Trust	38.20%	7.39%	4.00%

Summary

Four Corners Property Trust beats Postal Realty Trust on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Postal Realty Trust

Postal Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: PSTL) is an internally managed real estate investment trust that owns properties primarily leased to the United States Postal Service ("USPS"). PSTL is focused on acquiring the network of USPS properties, which provide a critical element of the nation's logistics infrastructure that facilitates cost effective and efficient last-mile delivery solutions. As of December 31, 2023, PSTL owned 1,509 properties (including two properties accounted for as financing leases) located in 49 states and one territory comprising approximately 5.9 million net leasable interior square feet. Subsequent to quarter-end and through February 23, 2024, PSTL closed on eight additional properties comprising approximately 33,000 net leasable interior square feet.

About Four Corners Property Trust

Four Corners Property Trust, Inc. engages in the owning, acquisition, and leasing of properties for use in the restaurant and food-service related industries. It operates through the Real Estate Operations and Restaurant Operations segments. The Real Estate Operations segment consists of rental revenues generated by leasing restaurant properties. The Restaurant Operations segment includes the Kerrow Restaurant operating business. The company was founded on July 2, 2015 and is headquartered in Mill Valley, CA.