Analyzing W. P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) and LTC Properties (NYSE:LTC)

LTC Properties (NYSE:LTC) and W. P. Carey (NYSE:WPC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their institutional ownership, earnings, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends and valuation.

Profitability

This table compares LTC Properties and W. P. Carey’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
LTC Properties	48.77%	10.49%	5.44%
W. P. Carey	35.12%	6.45%	3.14%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

69.3% of LTC Properties shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 73.7% of W. P. Carey shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.0% of LTC Properties shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.2% of W. P. Carey 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.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares LTC Properties and W. P. Carey”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	$197.24 million	8.70	$89.74 million	$2.33	16.28
W. P. Carey	$1.74 billion	6.96	$708.33 million	$2.54	21.81

W. P. Carey has higher revenue and earnings than LTC Properties. LTC Properties is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than W. P. Carey, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Volatility & Risk

LTC Properties has a beta of 0.9, indicating that its share price is 10% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, W. P. Carey has a beta of 0.95, indicating that its share price is 5% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for LTC Properties and W. P. Carey, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
LTC Properties	0	2	1	0	2.33
W. P. Carey	0	7	2	0	2.22

LTC Properties currently has a consensus price target of $37.00, indicating a potential downside of 2.45%. W. P. Carey has a consensus price target of $63.25, indicating a potential upside of 14.17%. Given W. P. Carey’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe W. P. Carey is more favorable than LTC Properties.

Dividends

LTC Properties pays an annual dividend of $2.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.0%. W. P. Carey pays an annual dividend of $3.50 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.3%. LTC Properties pays out 97.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. W. P. Carey pays out 137.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Summary

W. P. Carey beats LTC Properties on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About LTC Properties

LTC is a real estate investment trust (REIT) investing in seniors housing and health care properties primarily through sale-leasebacks, mortgage financing, joint-ventures and structured finance solutions including preferred equity and mezzanine lending. LTC's investment portfolio includes 201 properties in 26 states with 29 operating partners. Based on its gross real estate investments, LTC's investment portfolio is comprised of approximately 50% seniors housing and 50% skilled nursing properties.

About W. P. Carey

W. P. Carey ranks among the largest net lease REITs with a well-diversified portfolio of high-quality, operationally critical commercial real estate, which includes 1,424 net lease properties covering approximately 173 million square feet and a portfolio of 89 self-storage operating properties as of December 31, 2023. With offices in New York, London, Amsterdam and Dallas, the company remains focused on investing primarily in single-tenant, industrial, warehouse and retail properties located in the U.S. and Northern and Western Europe, under long-term net leases with built-in rent escalations.