Financial Contrast: Ventas (NYSE:VTR) & Rayonier (NYSE:RYN)

Ventas (NYSE:VTR) and Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, dividends, profitability, institutional ownership, risk and analyst recommendations.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

94.2% of Ventas shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 89.1% of Rayonier shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.0% of Ventas shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of Rayonier shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

Ventas has a beta of 1.33, indicating that its stock price is 33% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Rayonier has a beta of 1.05, indicating that its stock price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Ventas and Rayonier’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ventas	-3.33%	-1.63%	-0.63%
Rayonier	15.92%	3.21%	1.62%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Ventas and Rayonier’s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ventas	$4.50 billion	5.42	-$40.97 million	($0.19)	-310.46
Rayonier	$1.06 billion	4.13	$173.49 million	$1.12	26.18

Rayonier has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Ventas. Ventas is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Rayonier, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Ventas and Rayonier, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ventas	0	4	9	0	2.69
Rayonier	0	2	0	0	2.00

Ventas currently has a consensus price target of $53.54, indicating a potential downside of 9.24%. Rayonier has a consensus price target of $32.50, indicating a potential upside of 10.85%. Given Rayonier’s higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Rayonier is more favorable than Ventas.

Dividends

Ventas pays an annual dividend of $1.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.1%. Rayonier pays an annual dividend of $1.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Ventas pays out -947.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Rayonier pays out 101.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

About Ventas

Ventas Inc. (NYSE: VTR) is a leading S&P 500 real estate investment trust focused on delivering strong, sustainable shareholder returns by enabling exceptional environments that benefit a large and growing aging population. The Company's growth is fueled by its senior housing communities, which provide valuable services to residents and enable them to thrive in supported environments. Ventas leverages its unmatched operational expertise, data-driven insights from its Ventas Operational InsightsTM platform, extensive relationships and strong financial position to achieve its goal of delivering outsized performance across approximately 1,400 properties. The Ventas portfolio is composed of senior housing communities, outpatient medical buildings, research centers and healthcare facilities in North America and the United Kingdom. The Company benefits from a seasoned team of talented professionals who share a commitment to excellence, integrity and a common purpose of helping people live longer, healthier, happier lives.

About Rayonier

Rayonier is a leading timberland real estate investment trust with assets located in some of the most productive softwood timber growing regions in the United States and New Zealand. As of December 31, 2023, Rayonier owned or leased under long-term agreements approximately 2.7 million acres of timberlands located in the U.S. South (1.85 million acres), U.S. Pacific Northwest (418,000 acres) and New Zealand (421,000 acres).