Contrasting Veris Residential (NYSE:VRE) and Broadstone Net Lease (NYSE:BNL)

Broadstone Net Lease (NYSE:BNL) and Veris Residential (NYSE:VRE) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, earnings, dividends, valuation, institutional ownership, profitability and risk.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current ratings for Broadstone Net Lease and Veris Residential, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Broadstone Net Lease	0	3	9	0	2.75
Veris Residential	0	3	1	0	2.25

Broadstone Net Lease currently has a consensus price target of $19.91, indicating a potential upside of 6.44%. Veris Residential has a consensus price target of $18.67, indicating a potential upside of 25.15%. Given Veris Residential’s higher probable upside, analysts plainly believe Veris Residential is more favorable than Broadstone Net Lease.

Dividends

Broadstone Net Lease pays an annual dividend of $1.16 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.2%. Veris Residential pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.1%. Broadstone Net Lease pays out 246.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Veris Residential pays out 47.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Broadstone Net Lease has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years and Veris Residential has increased its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Broadstone Net Lease is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

89.1% of Broadstone Net Lease shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.0% of Veris Residential shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.6% of Broadstone Net Lease shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 16.4% of Veris Residential shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Risk & Volatility

Broadstone Net Lease has a beta of 1.01, suggesting that its stock price is 1% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Veris Residential has a beta of 1.25, suggesting that its stock price is 25% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Profitability

This table compares Broadstone Net Lease and Veris Residential’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Broadstone Net Lease	20.04%	2.93%	1.69%
Veris Residential	22.09%	4.72%	1.96%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Broadstone Net Lease and Veris Residential”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Broadstone Net Lease	$447.97 million	7.90	$162.44 million	$0.47	39.80
Veris Residential	$285.21 million	4.89	-$23.12 million	$0.67	22.26

Broadstone Net Lease has higher revenue and earnings than Veris Residential. Veris Residential is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Broadstone Net Lease, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Summary

Veris Residential beats Broadstone Net Lease on 9 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Broadstone Net Lease

Broadstone Net Lease, Inc. (the Corporation) is a Maryland corporation formed on October 18, 2007, that elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (REIT) commencing with the taxable year ended December 31, 2008. Broadstone Net Lease, LLC (the Corporation’s operating company, or the OP), is the entity through which the Corporation conducts its business and owns (either directly or through subsidiaries) all of the Corporation’s properties. The Corporation is the sole managing member of the OP. The membership units not owned by the Corporation are referred to as OP Units or non-controlling interests. As the Corporation conducts substantially all of its operations through the OP, it is structured as what is referred to as an umbrella partnership real estate investment trust (UPREIT). The Corporation’s common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol BNL.

About Veris Residential

Veris Residential, Inc. is a forward-thinking, environmentally and socially conscious real estate investment trust (REIT) that primarily owns, operates, acquires and develops holistically-inspired, Class A multifamily properties that meet the sustainability-conscious lifestyle needs of today’s residents while seeking to positively impact the communities it serves and the planet at large. The company is guided by an experienced management team and Board of Directors and is underpinned by leading corporate governance principle; a best-in-class and sustainable approach to operations; and an inclusive culture based on equality and meritocratic empowerment.