Veris Residential (NYSE:VRE) versus Highlands REIT (OTCMKTS:HHDS) Head to Head Survey

Veris Residential (NYSE:VRE) and Highlands REIT (OTCMKTS:HHDS) are both small-cap finance companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their risk, profitability, earnings, dividends, analyst recommendations, valuation and institutional ownership.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent recommendations for Veris Residential and Highlands REIT, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Veris Residential	0	2	2	0	2.50
Highlands REIT	0	0	0	0	0.00

Veris Residential currently has a consensus price target of $18.25, indicating a potential upside of 11.21%. Given Veris Residential’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, research analysts plainly believe Veris Residential is more favorable than Highlands REIT.

Profitability

This table compares Veris Residential and Highlands REIT’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Veris Residential	-5.70%	-4.97%	-2.02%
Highlands REIT	-11.68%	-1.98%	-1.19%

Institutional and Insider Ownership

93.0% of Veris Residential shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 0.0% of Highlands REIT shares are owned by institutional investors. 16.0% of Veris Residential shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 3.7% of Highlands REIT shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Veris Residential and Highlands REIT”s revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Veris Residential	$289.57 million	5.26	-$107.26 million	($0.17)	-96.53
Highlands REIT	$30.98 million	0.84	-$10.30 million	N/A	N/A

Highlands REIT has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Veris Residential.

Volatility and Risk

Veris Residential has a beta of 1.27, meaning that its share price is 27% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Highlands REIT has a beta of 15.97, meaning that its share price is 1,497% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Summary

Veris Residential beats Highlands REIT on 8 of the 12 factors compared between the two stocks.

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.

About Highlands REIT

We are a self-advised and self-administered real estate investment trust (REIT) created to own and manage substantially all of the non-core investment properties previously owned and managed by our former parent, InvenTrust Properties Corp., a Maryland corporation (InvenTrust). On April 28, 2016, we were spun-off from InvenTrust through a pro rata distribution (the Distribution) by InvenTrust of 100% of the outstanding shares of our common stock to holders of InvenTrust's common stock. Prior to or concurrent with the separation, we and InvenTrust engaged in certain reorganization transactions that were designed to consolidate substantially all of InvenTrust's remaining non-core investment properties in Highlands.