Highlands REIT (OTCMKTS:HHDS) and AG Mortgage Investment Trust (NYSE:MITT) Head to Head Analysis

Highlands REIT (OTCMKTS:HHDS) and AG Mortgage Investment Trust (NYSE:MITT) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, risk and analyst recommendations.

Profitability

This table compares Highlands REIT and AG Mortgage Investment Trust’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Highlands REIT	-10.86%	-1.60%	-1.03%
AG Mortgage Investment Trust	20.84%	10.05%	0.50%

Risk and Volatility

Highlands REIT has a beta of 22.45, suggesting that its share price is 2,145% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, AG Mortgage Investment Trust has a beta of 2.04, suggesting that its share price is 104% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Highlands REIT and AG Mortgage Investment Trust’s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Highlands REIT	$30.98 million	1.10	-$10.30 million	N/A	N/A
AG Mortgage Investment Trust	$260.33 million	0.76	$53.78 million	$1.74	3.86

AG Mortgage Investment Trust has higher revenue and earnings than Highlands REIT.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

0.0% of Highlands REIT shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 27.3% of AG Mortgage Investment Trust shares are owned by institutional investors. 3.7% of Highlands REIT shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 3.2% of AG Mortgage Investment Trust shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Highlands REIT and AG Mortgage Investment Trust, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Highlands REIT	0	0	0	0	N/A
AG Mortgage Investment Trust	0	1	3	0	2.75

AG Mortgage Investment Trust has a consensus price target of $7.50, suggesting a potential upside of 11.77%. Given AG Mortgage Investment Trust’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe AG Mortgage Investment Trust is more favorable than Highlands REIT.

Summary

AG Mortgage Investment Trust beats Highlands REIT on 8 of the 11 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Highlands REIT

We are a self-advised and self-administered real estate investment trust (REIT) created to own and manage substantially all of the non-core investment properties previously owned and managed by our former parent, InvenTrust Properties Corp., a Maryland corporation (InvenTrust). On April 28, 2016, we were spun-off from InvenTrust through a pro rata distribution (the Distribution) by InvenTrust of 100% of the outstanding shares of our common stock to holders of InvenTrust's common stock. Prior to or concurrent with the separation, we and InvenTrust engaged in certain reorganization transactions that were designed to consolidate substantially all of InvenTrust's remaining non-core investment properties in Highlands.

About AG Mortgage Investment Trust

AG Mortgage Investment Trust, Inc. operates as a residential mortgage real estate investment trust in the United States. Its investment portfolio includes residential investments, including non-agency loans, agency-eligible loans, re-and non-performing loans, and non-agency residential mortgage-backed securities, as well as commercial loans and commercial mortgage-backed securities. The company qualifies as a real estate investment trust for federal income tax purposes. It generally would not be subject to federal corporate income taxes if it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its stockholders. AG Mortgage Investment Trust, Inc. was incorporated in 2011 and is based in New York, New York.