National Health Investors (NHI) Competitors

CareTrust REIT (NASDAQ:CTRE) and National Health Investors (NYSE:NHI) are both mid-cap finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their profitability, dividends, earnings, media sentiment, valuation, risk, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Does the media prefer CTRE or NHI?

In the previous week, National Health Investors had 10 more articles in the media than CareTrust REIT. MarketBeat recorded 21 mentions for National Health Investors and 11 mentions for CareTrust REIT. CareTrust REIT's average media sentiment score of 0.90 beat National Health Investors' score of 0.77 indicating that CareTrust REIT is being referred to more favorably in the media.

Company	Very Positive	Positive	Neutral	Negative	Very Negative	Overall Sentiment
CareTrust REIT	5 Very Positive mention(s)	1 Positive mention(s)	4 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive
National Health Investors	8 Very Positive mention(s)	2 Positive mention(s)	8 Neutral mention(s)	0 Negative mention(s)	0 Very Negative mention(s)	Positive

Which has higher valuation and earnings, CTRE or NHI?

National Health Investors has higher revenue and earnings than CareTrust REIT. National Health Investors is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than CareTrust REIT, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Company	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
CareTrust REIT	$246.41M	25.60	$125.08M	$0.92	35.77
National Health Investors	$335.18M	10.61	$137.99M	$3.15	23.78

Which has more risk & volatility, CTRE or NHI?

CareTrust REIT has a beta of 0.85, suggesting that its stock price is 15% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, National Health Investors has a beta of 0.73, suggesting that its stock price is 27% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Do insiders & institutionals believe in CTRE or NHI?

87.8% of CareTrust REIT shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.5% of National Health Investors shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.5% of CareTrust REIT shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 7.3% of National Health Investors shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Is CTRE or NHI more profitable?

CareTrust REIT has a net margin of 42.22% compared to National Health Investors' net margin of 40.97%. National Health Investors' return on equity of 10.32% beat CareTrust REIT's return on equity.

Company	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
CareTrust REIT	42.22%	5.59%	4.39%
National Health Investors	40.97%	10.32%	5.41%

Do analysts recommend CTRE or NHI?

CareTrust REIT currently has a consensus price target of $31.17, indicating a potential downside of 5.30%. National Health Investors has a consensus price target of $84.60, indicating a potential upside of 12.92%. Given National Health Investors' stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe National Health Investors is more favorable than CareTrust REIT.

Company	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
CareTrust REIT	1 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	4 Buy rating(s)	0 Strong Buy rating(s)	2.50
National Health Investors	0 Sell rating(s)	1 Hold rating(s)	3 Buy rating(s)	1 Strong Buy rating(s)	3.00

Is CTRE or NHI a better dividend stock?

CareTrust REIT pays an annual dividend of $1.34 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. National Health Investors pays an annual dividend of $3.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.8%. CareTrust REIT pays out 145.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. National Health Investors pays out 114.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. CareTrust REIT has increased its dividend for 3 consecutive years. National Health Investors is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Summary

National Health Investors beats CareTrust REIT on 12 of the 20 factors compared between the two stocks.