Comparing Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) and Office Properties Income Trust (NASDAQ:OPI)

Office Properties Income Trust (NASDAQ:OPI) and Equity Residential (NYSE:EQR) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, valuation and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Office Properties Income Trust and Equity Residential’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Office Properties Income Trust	-62.99%	-25.56%	-8.02%
Equity Residential	30.63%	8.57%	4.58%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Office Properties Income Trust and Equity Residential”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Office Properties Income Trust	$466.97 million	2.63	-$136.11 million	N/A	N/A
Equity Residential	$3.11 billion	8.40	$1.12 billion	$2.50	27.90

Equity Residential has higher revenue and earnings than Office Properties Income Trust.

Risk and Volatility

Office Properties Income Trust has a beta of 1.71, meaning that its share price is 71% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Equity Residential has a beta of 0.74, meaning that its share price is 26% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Office Properties Income Trust and Equity Residential, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Office Properties Income Trust	1	0	0	0	1.00
Equity Residential	0	13	9	1	2.48

Equity Residential has a consensus price target of $70.65, indicating a potential upside of 1.29%. Given Equity Residential’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Equity Residential is more favorable than Office Properties Income Trust.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

64.4% of Office Properties Income Trust shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.7% of Equity Residential shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.8% of Office Properties Income Trust shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of Equity Residential shares are owned 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.

Dividends

Office Properties Income Trust pays an annual dividend of $0.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.2%. Equity Residential pays an annual dividend of $2.81 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.0%. Equity Residential pays out 112.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Equity Residential has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years. Equity Residential is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Summary

Equity Residential beats Office Properties Income Trust on 14 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Office Properties Income Trust

Office Properties Income Trust is a real estate investment trust. It owns, operates, and leases office buildings to single tenants and multi-tenant buildings. The company was founded on February 17, 2009 and is headquartered in Newton, MA.

About Equity Residential

Equity Residential is committed to creating communities where people thrive. The Company, a member of the S&P 500, is focused on the acquisition, development and management of residential properties located in and around dynamic cities that attract affluent long-term renters. Equity Residential owns or has investments in 305 properties consisting of 80,683 apartment units, with an established presence in Boston, New York, Washington, D.C., Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California, and an expanding presence in Denver, Atlanta, Dallas/Ft. Worth and Austin.