Sun Communities (NYSE:SUI – Get Free Report) and Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust (OTCMKTS:BOWFF – Get Free Report) are both real estate companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, earnings, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations and dividends.
Volatility and Risk
Sun Communities has a beta of 0.75, suggesting that its stock price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust has a beta of 0.88, suggesting that its stock price is 12% less volatile than the S&P 500.
Dividends
Sun Communities pays an annual dividend of $4.48 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.7%. Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust pays an annual dividend of $1.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.9%. Sun Communities pays out -72.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust pays out -118.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Sun Communities has increased its dividend for 8 consecutive years. Sun Communities is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.
Valuation & Earnings
This table compares Sun Communities and Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Sun Communities | $2.31 billion | 6.22 | $1.37 billion | ($6.16) | -19.52 |
| Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust | $457.06 million | 4.36 | $140.90 million | ($1.08) | -40.67 |
Sun Communities has higher revenue and earnings than Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust. Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Sun Communities, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Sun Communities and Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Sun Communities | -36.00% | 5.02% | 2.82% |
| Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust | -7.44% | -1.00% | -0.54% |
Analyst Ratings
This is a breakdown of recent recommendations and price targets for Sun Communities and Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust, as provided by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Sun Communities | 1 | 5 | 9 | 2 | 2.71 |
| Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2.00 |
Sun Communities presently has a consensus target price of $136.25, indicating a potential upside of 13.30%. Given Sun Communities’ stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts clearly believe Sun Communities is more favorable than Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust.
Institutional & Insider Ownership
99.6% of Sun Communities shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.6% of Sun Communities shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 19.0% of Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Summary
Sun Communities beats Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Sun Communities
Established in 1975, Sun Communities, Inc. became a publicly owned corporation in December 1993. The Company is a fully integrated REIT listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol: SUI. As of December 31, 2023, the Company owned, operated, or had an interest in a portfolio of 667 developed MH, RV and Marina properties comprising 179,310 developed sites and approximately 48,030 wet slips and dry storage spaces in the U.S., the UK and Canada.
About Boardwalk Real Estate Investment Trust
Boardwalk REIT strives to be Canada’s friendliest community provider and is a leading owner/operator of multi-family rental communities. Providing homes in more than 200 communities, with over 34,000 residential suites totaling over 29 million net rentable square feet, Boardwalk has a proven long-term track record of building better communities, where love always lives. Our three-tiered and distinct brands: Boardwalk Living, Boardwalk Communities, and Boardwalk Lifestyle, cater to a large diverse demographic and has evolved to capture the life cycle of all Resident Members. Boardwalk’s disciplined approach to capital allocation, acquisition, development, purposeful re-positioning, and management of apartment communities allows the Trust to provide its brand of community across Canada creating exceptional Resident Member experiences. Differentiated by its peak performance culture, Boardwalk is committed to delivering exceptional service, product quality and experience to our Resident Members who reward us with high retention and market leading operating results, which in turn, lead to higher free cash flow and investment returns, stable monthly distributions, and value creation for all our stakeholders. Boardwalk REIT’s Trust Units are listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange, trading under the symbol BEI.UN.
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