Comparing Lineage (NASDAQ:LINE) & EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP)

Lineage (NASDAQ:LINE) and EastGroup Properties (NYSE:EGP) are both finance companies, but which is the better investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their institutional ownership, risk, analyst recommendations, profitability, dividends, valuation and earnings.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Lineage and EastGroup Properties”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lineage	$5.36 billion	1.52	-$100.00 million	($0.43)	-83.47
EastGroup Properties	$721.34 million	14.55	$257.40 million	$4.87	40.08

EastGroup Properties has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Lineage. Lineage is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than EastGroup Properties, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Lineage pays an annual dividend of $2.13 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.9%. EastGroup Properties pays an annual dividend of $6.20 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.2%. Lineage pays out -495.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. EastGroup Properties pays out 127.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. EastGroup Properties has raised its dividend for 4 consecutive years. Lineage is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Profitability

This table compares Lineage and EastGroup Properties’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lineage	-1.87%	-1.06%	-0.52%
EastGroup Properties	35.68%	7.43%	4.85%

Insider and Institutional Ownership

92.1% of EastGroup Properties shares are owned by institutional investors. 71.9% of Lineage shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 1.0% of EastGroup Properties shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Lineage and EastGroup Properties, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lineage	4	11	5	0	2.05
EastGroup Properties	0	5	10	1	2.75

Lineage presently has a consensus price target of $43.28, indicating a potential upside of 20.58%. EastGroup Properties has a consensus price target of $200.18, indicating a potential upside of 2.56%. Given Lineage’s higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Lineage is more favorable than EastGroup Properties.

Risk and Volatility

Lineage has a beta of 0.1, meaning that its share price is 90% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, EastGroup Properties has a beta of 1.09, meaning that its share price is 9% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

EastGroup Properties beats Lineage on 13 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lineage

Lineage, Inc. is the world’s largest global temperature-controlled warehouse REIT with a network of over 480 strategically located facilities totaling over 84.1 million square feet and 3.0 billion cubic feet of capacity across countries in North America, Europe, and Asia-Pacific. Coupling end-to-end supply chain solutions and technology, Lineage partners with some of the world’s largest food and beverage producers, retailers, and distributors to help increase distribution efficiency, advance sustainability, minimize supply chain waste, and, most importantly, feed the world.

About EastGroup Properties

EastGroup Properties, Inc. (NYSE: EGP), a member of the S&P Mid-Cap 400 and Russell 1000 Indexes, is a self-administered equity real estate investment trust focused on the development, acquisition and operation of industrial properties in major Sunbelt markets throughout the United States with an emphasis in the states of Florida, Texas, Arizona, California and North Carolina. The Company's goal is to maximize shareholder value by being a leading provider in its markets of functional, flexible and quality business distribution space for location sensitive customers (primarily in the 20,000 to 100,000 square foot range). The Company's strategy for growth is based on ownership of premier distribution facilities generally clustered near major transportation features in supply-constrained submarkets. The Company's portfolio, including development projects and value-add acquisitions in lease-up and under construction, currently includes approximately 59 million square feet.