Head to Head Survey: LTC Properties (NYSE:LTC) & National Healthcare Properties (NASDAQ:NHP)

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

Earnings and Valuation

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

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
National Healthcare Properties	$342.28 million	3.45	-$57.62 million	($0.13)	-124.62
LTC Properties	$262.85 million	8.47	$117.97 million	$2.71	15.24

LTC Properties has lower revenue, but higher earnings 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.

Dividends

National Healthcare Properties pays an annual dividend of $0.30 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. LTC Properties pays an annual dividend of $2.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.5%. National Healthcare Properties pays out -230.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. 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.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

69.3% of LTC Properties shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.2% of LTC Properties shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations for National Healthcare Properties and LTC Properties, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
National Healthcare Properties	1	5	6	0	2.42
LTC Properties	0	4	5	0	2.56

National Healthcare Properties presently has a consensus target price of $18.22, suggesting a potential upside of 12.48%. LTC Properties has a consensus target price of $44.00, suggesting a potential upside of 6.56%. Given National Healthcare Properties’ higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe National Healthcare Properties is more favorable than LTC Properties.

Profitability

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

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

Summary

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

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.

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.