Head to Head Analysis: AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNCZ) versus Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD)

Starwood Property Trust (NYSE:STWD) and AGNC Investment (NASDAQ:AGNCZ) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, institutional ownership, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for Starwood Property Trust and AGNC Investment, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Starwood Property Trust	0	4	3	0	2.43
AGNC Investment	0	0	0	0	0.00

Starwood Property Trust presently has a consensus target price of $19.90, indicating a potential upside of 16.75%. Given Starwood Property Trust’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Starwood Property Trust is more favorable than AGNC Investment.

Profitability

This table compares Starwood Property Trust and AGNC Investment’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Starwood Property Trust	22.32%	8.16%	0.91%
AGNC Investment	N/A	N/A	N/A

Insider & Institutional Ownership

49.8% of Starwood Property Trust shares are held by institutional investors. 5.8% of Starwood Property Trust shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Starwood Property Trust and AGNC Investment”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Starwood Property Trust	$1.84 billion	3.43	$411.54 million	$1.16	14.69
AGNC Investment	$1.80 billion	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A

Starwood Property Trust has higher revenue and earnings than AGNC Investment.

Summary

Starwood Property Trust beats AGNC Investment on 9 of the 9 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Starwood Property Trust

Starwood Property Trust, Inc. operates as a real estate investment trust (REIT) in the United States and internationally. The company operates through Commercial and Residential Lending, Infrastructure Lending, Property, and Investing and Servicing segments. The Commercial and Residential Lending segment originates, acquires, finances, and manages commercial first mortgages, non-agency residential mortgages, subordinated mortgages, mezzanine loans, preferred equity, commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS), and residential mortgage-backed securities, as well as other real estate and real estate-related debt investments, include distressed or non-performing loans. The Infrastructure lending segment originates, acquires, finances, and manages infrastructure debt investments. The Property segment engages primarily in acquiring and managing equity interests in stabilized commercial real estate properties, such as multifamily properties and commercial properties subject to net leases, that are held for investment. The Investing and Servicing segment manages and works out problem assets; acquires and manages unrated, investment grade, and non-investment grade rated CMBS comprising subordinated interests of securitization and re-securitization transactions; originates conduit loans for the primary purpose of selling these loans into securitization transactions; and acquires commercial real estate assets that include properties acquired from CMBS trusts. The company qualifies as a REIT for federal income tax purposes and would not be subject to federal corporate income taxes if it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its stockholders. The company was incorporated in 2009 and is headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut.