Welltower (NYSE:WELL) versus Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) Head to Head Comparison

Host Hotels & Resorts (NASDAQ:HST) and Welltower (NYSE:WELL) are both large-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, profitability, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends and valuation.

Risk & Volatility

Host Hotels & Resorts has a beta of 1.31, indicating that its share price is 31% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Welltower has a beta of 1.22, indicating that its share price is 22% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

98.5% of Host Hotels & Resorts shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.8% of Welltower shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.3% of Host Hotels & Resorts shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.1% of Welltower shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Host Hotels & Resorts and Welltower”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Host Hotels & Resorts	$5.31 billion	2.23	$740.00 million	$1.03	16.45
Welltower	$6.64 billion	12.83	$340.09 million	$1.52	90.00

Host Hotels & Resorts has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Welltower. Host Hotels & Resorts is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Welltower, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Host Hotels & Resorts and Welltower, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Host Hotels & Resorts	1	3	8	0	2.58
Welltower	0	4	8	2	2.86

Host Hotels & Resorts currently has a consensus target price of $21.04, suggesting a potential upside of 24.21%. Welltower has a consensus target price of $134.81, suggesting a potential downside of 1.45%. Given Host Hotels & Resorts’ higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Host Hotels & Resorts is more favorable than Welltower.

Profitability

This table compares Host Hotels & Resorts and Welltower’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Host Hotels & Resorts	12.92%	10.72%	5.75%
Welltower	12.22%	3.20%	2.00%

Dividends

Host Hotels & Resorts pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.7%. Welltower pays an annual dividend of $2.68 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.0%. Host Hotels & Resorts pays out 77.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Welltower pays out 176.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Host Hotels & Resorts is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Summary

Host Hotels & Resorts beats Welltower on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Host Hotels & Resorts

Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc. is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the management of luxury and upper-upscale hotels. It operates through the following geographical segments: United States, Brazil, and Canada. The company was founded in 1927 and is headquartered in Bethesda, MD.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL), a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) and S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people’s wellness and overall health care experience. Welltower owns interests in properties concentrated in major, high-growth markets in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, consisting of seniors housing and post-acute communities and outpatient medical properties.