Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE:JLL) and Star (NASDAQ:STHO) Critical Survey

Star (NASDAQ:STHO) and Jones Lang LaSalle (NYSE:JLL) are both real estate companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, institutional ownership, dividends, earnings, risk, valuation and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares Star and Jones Lang LaSalle’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Star	14.77%	-0.90%	-0.45%
Jones Lang LaSalle	3.64%	13.99%	5.96%

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations for Star and Jones Lang LaSalle, as reported by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Star	0	1	0	0	2.00
Jones Lang LaSalle	0	2	5	1	2.88

Jones Lang LaSalle has a consensus target price of $417.83, indicating a potential upside of 11.60%. Given Jones Lang LaSalle’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Jones Lang LaSalle is more favorable than Star.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

89.3% of Star shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.8% of Jones Lang LaSalle shares are held by institutional investors. 4.1% of Star shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Jones Lang LaSalle shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Star has a beta of 1.21, indicating that its share price is 21% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Jones Lang LaSalle has a beta of 1.25, indicating that its share price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Star and Jones Lang LaSalle”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Star	$110.14 million	1.07	-$64.25 million	$1.21	8.10
Jones Lang LaSalle	$26.12 billion	0.66	$792.10 million	$20.87	17.94

Jones Lang LaSalle has higher revenue and earnings than Star. Star is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Jones Lang LaSalle, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Jones Lang LaSalle beats Star on 12 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Star

Star Holdings engages in the non-ground lease related commercial real estate businesses in the United States. Its portfolio primarily comprises interest in the Asbury Park Waterfront and Magnolia Green residential development projects. Star Holdings is based in New York, New York.

About Jones Lang LaSalle

Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated operates as a commercial real estate and investment management company. It engages in the buying, building, occupying, managing, and investing in a commercial, industrial, hotel, residential, and retail properties in Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and the Asia Pacific. The company offers a range of real estate services, including agency leasing, tenant representation, property management, advisory, and consulting services; and capital market services, such as equity and debt advisory, loan sales, equity advisory, loan servicing, merger and acquisition, corporate advisory, and investment sales and advisory services. It also provides on-site management services for office, industrial, retail, multifamily residential, and various other properties; integrated facilities management services; designing, building, management, and consulting services to tenants of leased space, owners in self-occupied buildings, and owners of real estate investments; and advisory, consulting, valuation, and energy and sustainability services. In addition, the company offers investment management services to institutional and retail investors, including high-net-worth individuals. It provides its services to real estate owners, occupiers, investors, and developers for various property types, including critical environments and data centers, offices, industrial and warehouses, residential properties, infrastructure projects, retail and shopping malls, logistics, and military housing and transportation centers; and hotels and hospitality, cultural, educational, government, healthcare and laboratory, and sports facilities. The company was formerly known as LaSalle Partners Incorporated and changed its name to Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated in March 1999. Jones Lang LaSalle Incorporated was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.