Comparing Centerspace (NYSE:CSR) and Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA)

Mid-America Apartment Communities (NYSE:MAA) and Centerspace (NYSE:CSR) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, institutional ownership, dividends, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and profitability.

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Mid-America Apartment Communities and Centerspace”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Mid-America Apartment Communities	$2.20 billion	6.96	$527.54 million	$4.72	27.74
Centerspace	$273.45 million	4.10	-$10.69 million	$1.79	37.51

Mid-America Apartment Communities has higher revenue and earnings than Centerspace. Mid-America Apartment Communities is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Centerspace, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Mid-America Apartment Communities pays an annual dividend of $6.06 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.6%. Centerspace pays an annual dividend of $3.08 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.6%. Mid-America Apartment Communities pays out 128.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Centerspace pays out 172.1% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Mid-America Apartment Communities has raised its dividend for 16 consecutive years and Centerspace has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Mid-America Apartment Communities is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Risk and Volatility

Mid-America Apartment Communities has a beta of 0.78, meaning that its stock price is 22% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Centerspace has a beta of 0.75, meaning that its stock price is 25% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings for Mid-America Apartment Communities and Centerspace, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Mid-America Apartment Communities	2	11	8	0	2.29
Centerspace	0	7	3	0	2.30

Mid-America Apartment Communities currently has a consensus target price of $156.22, indicating a potential upside of 19.33%. Centerspace has a consensus target price of $68.11, indicating a potential upside of 1.43%. Given Mid-America Apartment Communities’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Mid-America Apartment Communities is more favorable than Centerspace.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

93.6% of Mid-America Apartment Communities shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 79.0% of Centerspace shares are owned by institutional investors. 1.2% of Mid-America Apartment Communities shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of Centerspace 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.

Profitability

This table compares Mid-America Apartment Communities and Centerspace’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Mid-America Apartment Communities	25.23%	9.10%	4.70%
Centerspace	-9.13%	-2.81%	-1.27%

Summary

Mid-America Apartment Communities beats Centerspace on 16 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Mid-America Apartment Communities

Mid-America Apartment Communities, Inc. is a real estate investment trust, which engages in the operation, acquisition, and development of apartment communities. It operates through the Same Store and Non-Same Store segments. The Same Store Communities segment represents those apartment communities that have been owned and stabilized for at least 12 months as of the first day of the calendar year. The Non-Same Store segment includes recent acquisitions, communities in development or lease-up. The company was founded in 1994 and is headquartered in Germantown, TN.

About Centerspace

Centerspace is an owner and operator of apartment communities committed to providing great homes by focusing on integrity and serving others. Founded in 1970, as of September 30, 2023, Centerspace owned interests in 71 apartment communities consisting of 12,785 apartment homes located in Colorado, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. Centerspace was named a Top Workplace for the fourth consecutive year in 2023 by the Minneapolis Star Tribune.