LTC Properties (NYSE:LTC) vs. Smartstop Self Storage REIT (NYSE:SMA) Head to Head Survey

LTC Properties (NYSE:LTC) and Smartstop Self Storage REIT (NYSE:SMA) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares LTC Properties and Smartstop Self Storage REIT’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
LTC Properties	38.99%	10.87%	6.03%
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	4.38%	1.00%	0.54%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

69.3% of LTC Properties shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.2% of LTC Properties shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 5.5% of Smartstop Self Storage REIT shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares LTC Properties and Smartstop Self Storage REIT”s top-line 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	7.49	$117.97 million	$2.47	15.58
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	$281.14 million	6.49	-$1.55 million	$0.15	219.63

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

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for LTC Properties and Smartstop Self Storage REIT, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
LTC Properties	0	4	3	1	2.63
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	1	3	4	2	2.70

LTC Properties currently has a consensus target price of $40.60, indicating a potential upside of 5.48%. Smartstop Self Storage REIT has a consensus target price of $36.81, indicating a potential upside of 11.74%. Given Smartstop Self Storage REIT’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Smartstop Self Storage REIT is more favorable than LTC Properties.

Dividends

LTC Properties pays an annual dividend of $2.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.9%. Smartstop Self Storage REIT pays an annual dividend of $1.63 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. LTC Properties pays out 92.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Smartstop Self Storage REIT pays out 1,086.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. LTC Properties is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Risk and Volatility

LTC Properties has a beta of 0.57, meaning that its stock price is 43% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Smartstop Self Storage REIT has a beta of 0.69, meaning that its stock price is 31% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

LTC Properties beats Smartstop Self Storage REIT on 9 of the 17 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 Smartstop Self Storage REIT

Symmetry Medical Inc. (Symmetry) is a medical device solutions company, including surgical instruments, orthopedic implants, and sterilization cases and trays. The Company designs, develops and offers worldwide production and supply chain capabilities for these products to customers in the orthopedic industry, and other medical device markets (including but not limited to arthroscopy, dental, laparoscopy, osteobiologic, and endoscopy segments). It also manufactures specialized non-healthcare products, primarily in the aerospace industry. The Company operates in two segments: original equipment manufacturer (OEM) solutions and symmetry surgical. On August 15, 2011, the Company acquired PSC Industries, Inc’s Olsen Medical division. On December 29, 2011 it acquired the surgical instruments product portfolio from Codman & Shurtleff, Inc., a Johnson & Johnson Company.