Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) and Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) Financial Analysis

Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) and Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE:EPRT) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, analyst recommendations, dividends, valuation, risk, profitability and institutional ownership.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

98.4% of Brixmor Property Group shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.0% of Essential Properties Realty Trust shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.8% of Brixmor Property Group shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 0.8% of Essential Properties Realty Trust shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Brixmor Property Group and Essential Properties Realty Trust’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Brixmor Property Group	28.16%	13.00%	4.37%
Essential Properties Realty Trust	45.08%	6.44%	3.92%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Brixmor Property Group and Essential Properties Realty Trust”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Brixmor Property Group	$1.37 billion	6.54	$339.27 million	$1.26	23.23
Essential Properties Realty Trust	$561.22 million	12.01	$203.00 million	$1.28	25.08

Brixmor Property Group has higher revenue and earnings than Essential Properties Realty Trust. Brixmor Property Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Essential Properties Realty Trust, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Brixmor Property Group pays an annual dividend of $1.23 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.2%. Essential Properties Realty Trust pays an annual dividend of $1.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.9%. Brixmor Property Group pays out 97.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Essential Properties Realty Trust pays out 96.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Brixmor Property Group has raised its dividend for 5 consecutive years and Essential Properties Realty Trust has raised its dividend for 6 consecutive years.

Volatility and Risk

Brixmor Property Group has a beta of 1.1, indicating that its stock price is 10% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Essential Properties Realty Trust has a beta of 0.99, indicating that its stock price is 1% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and price targets for Brixmor Property Group and Essential Properties Realty Trust, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Brixmor Property Group	0	2	8	0	2.80
Essential Properties Realty Trust	0	2	9	0	2.82

Brixmor Property Group presently has a consensus price target of $30.00, suggesting a potential upside of 2.51%. Essential Properties Realty Trust has a consensus price target of $35.45, suggesting a potential upside of 10.41%. Given Essential Properties Realty Trust’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Essential Properties Realty Trust is more favorable than Brixmor Property Group.

Summary

Essential Properties Realty Trust beats Brixmor Property Group on 10 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Brixmor Property Group

Brixmor Property Group, Inc. operates as a real estate investment trust, which engages in owning and operating a portfolio of grocery anchored community and neighborhood shopping centers. The company was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

About Essential Properties Realty Trust

Essential Properties Realty Trust, Inc., a real estate company, acquires, owns, and manages single-tenant properties in the United States. The company leases its properties to middle-market companies, such as restaurants, car washes, automotive services, medical and dental services, convenience stores, equipment rental, entertainment, early childhood education, grocery, and health and fitness on a long-term basis. As of December 31, 2021, it had a portfolio of 1, 451 properties. The company qualifies as a real estate investment trust for federal income tax purposes. It generally 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 founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Princeton, New Jersey.