Head to Head Review: Universal Health Realty Income Trust (NYSE:UHT) and EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP)

Universal Health Realty Income Trust (NYSE:UHT) and EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, analyst recommendations, valuation, risk, dividends and institutional ownership.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Universal Health Realty Income Trust and EastGroup Properties”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Universal Health Realty Income Trust	$99.19 million	5.97	$17.61 million	$1.26	33.84
EastGroup Properties	$721.34 million	13.87	$257.40 million	$4.87	38.53

EastGroup Properties has higher revenue and earnings than Universal Health Realty Income Trust. Universal Health Realty Income Trust is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than EastGroup Properties, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Universal Health Realty Income Trust pays an annual dividend of $2.98 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.0%. EastGroup Properties pays an annual dividend of $6.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.3%. Universal Health Realty Income Trust pays out 236.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. EastGroup Properties pays out 127.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Universal Health Realty Income Trust has increased its dividend for 2 consecutive years and EastGroup Properties has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years.

Volatility & Risk

Universal Health Realty Income Trust has a beta of 0.89, meaning that its share price is 11% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, EastGroup Properties has a beta of 1.1, meaning that its share price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

64.7% of Universal Health Realty Income Trust shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 92.1% of EastGroup Properties shares are held by institutional investors. 2.4% of Universal Health Realty Income Trust shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of EastGroup Properties shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Universal Health Realty Income Trust and EastGroup Properties’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Universal Health Realty Income Trust	17.75%	10.86%	3.09%
EastGroup Properties	35.68%	7.43%	4.85%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and recommmendations for Universal Health Realty Income Trust and EastGroup Properties, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Universal Health Realty Income Trust	0	1	0	0	2.00
EastGroup Properties	0	5	10	1	2.75

EastGroup Properties has a consensus target price of $200.18, indicating a potential upside of 6.67%. Given EastGroup Properties’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe EastGroup Properties is more favorable than Universal Health Realty Income Trust.

Summary

EastGroup Properties beats Universal Health Realty Income Trust on 15 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Universal Health Realty Income Trust

Universal Health Realty Income Trust, a real estate investment trust, invests in healthcare and human-service related facilities including acute care hospitals, behavioral health care hospitals, specialty facilities, medical/office buildings, free-standing emergency departments and childcare centers. We have investments or commitments in seventy-six properties located in twenty-one states.

About EastGroup Properties

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE: EGP), a member of the S&P Mid-Cap 400 and Russell 1000 Indexes, is a self-administered equity real estate investment trust focused on the development, acquisition and operation of industrial properties in major Sunbelt markets throughout the United States with an emphasis in the states of Florida, Texas, Arizona, California and North Carolina. The Company's goal is to maximize shareholder value by being a leading provider in its markets of functional, flexible and quality business distribution space for location sensitive customers (primarily in the 20,000 to 100,000 square foot range). The Company's strategy for growth is based on ownership of premier distribution facilities generally clustered near major transportation features in supply-constrained submarkets. The Company's portfolio, including development projects and value-add acquisitions in lease-up and under construction, currently includes approximately 59 million square feet.