Welltower (NYSE:WELL) & Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE:RHP) Head-To-Head Review

Ryman Hospitality Properties (NYSE:RHP) and Welltower (NYSE:WELL) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, dividends, profitability, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership and risk.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

94.5% of Ryman Hospitality Properties shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 94.8% of Welltower shares are held by institutional investors. 3.2% of Ryman Hospitality Properties shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.4% of Welltower shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Ryman Hospitality Properties and Welltower’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Ryman Hospitality Properties	9.45%	32.46%	4.10%
Welltower	8.64%	2.46%	1.59%

Volatility and Risk

Ryman Hospitality Properties has a beta of 1.19, suggesting that its share price is 19% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Welltower has a beta of 0.83, suggesting that its share price is 17% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Ryman Hospitality Properties pays an annual dividend of $4.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.7%. Welltower pays an annual dividend of $2.96 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.4%. Ryman Hospitality Properties pays out 127.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Welltower pays out 211.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Ryman Hospitality Properties has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years and Welltower has raised its dividend for 2 consecutive years. Ryman Hospitality Properties is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Ryman Hospitality Properties and Welltower, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Ryman Hospitality Properties	0	1	10	0	2.91
Welltower	0	3	10	1	2.86

Ryman Hospitality Properties currently has a consensus price target of $114.10, indicating a potential upside of 11.58%. Welltower has a consensus price target of $225.43, indicating a potential upside of 9.22%. Given Ryman Hospitality Properties’ stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Ryman Hospitality Properties is more favorable than Welltower.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Ryman Hospitality Properties and Welltower”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Ryman Hospitality Properties	$2.58 billion	2.50	$243.43 million	$3.76	27.20
Welltower	$10.84 billion	13.42	$936.84 million	$1.40	147.43

Welltower has higher revenue and earnings than Ryman Hospitality Properties. Ryman Hospitality Properties is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Welltower, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Ryman Hospitality Properties beats Welltower on 10 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Ryman Hospitality Properties

Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. (NYSE: RHP) is a leading lodging and hospitality real estate investment trust that specializes in upscale convention center resorts and entertainment experiences. The Company's holdings include Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center; Gaylord Palms Resort & Convention Center; Gaylord Texan Resort & Convention Center; Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center; and Gaylord Rockies Resort & Convention Center, five of the top seven largest non-gaming convention center hotels in the United States based on total indoor meeting space. The Company also owns the JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort & Spa as well as two ancillary hotels adjacent to our Gaylord Hotels properties. The Company's hotel portfolio is managed by Marriott International and includes a combined total of 11,414 rooms as well as more than 3 million square feet of total indoor and outdoor meeting space in top convention and leisure destinations across the country. RHP also owns a 70% controlling ownership interest in Opry Entertainment Group (OEG), which is composed of entities owning a growing collection of iconic and emerging country music brands, including the Grand Ole Opry, Ryman Auditorium, WSM 650 AM, Ole Red, Nashville-area attractions, and Block 21, a mixed-use entertainment, lodging, office and retail complex, including the W Austin Hotel and the ACL Live at the Moody Theater, located in downtown Austin, Texas. RHP operates OEG as its Entertainment segment in a taxable REIT subsidiary, and its results are consolidated in the Company's financial results.

About Welltower

Welltower Inc. (NYSE:WELL), a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) and S&P 500 company headquartered in Toledo, Ohio, is driving the transformation of health care infrastructure. Welltower invests with leading seniors housing operators, post-acute providers and health systems to fund the real estate infrastructure needed to scale innovative care delivery models and improve people’s wellness and overall health care experience. Welltower owns interests in properties concentrated in major, high-growth markets in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, consisting of seniors housing and post-acute communities and outpatient medical properties.