Contrasting CubeSmart (NYSE:CUBE) and Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW)

Medical Properties Trust (NYSE:MPW) and CubeSmart (NYSE:CUBE) are both finance companies, but which is the better business? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, risk, dividends, valuation, profitability and analyst recommendations.

Dividends

Medical Properties Trust pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 7.4%. CubeSmart pays an annual dividend of $2.04 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.1%. Medical Properties Trust pays out -7.6% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. CubeSmart pays out 115.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. CubeSmart has raised its dividend for 14 consecutive years. Medical Properties Trust is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Volatility & Risk

Medical Properties Trust has a beta of 1.32, meaning that its stock price is 32% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, CubeSmart has a beta of 0.84, meaning that its stock price is 16% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

71.8% of Medical Properties Trust shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 97.6% of CubeSmart shares are held by institutional investors. 1.5% of Medical Properties Trust shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 1.7% of CubeSmart 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 Medical Properties Trust and CubeSmart’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Medical Properties Trust	N/A	-38.83%	-15.05%
CubeSmart	37.79%	14.33%	6.48%

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Medical Properties Trust and CubeSmart”s gross revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Medical Properties Trust	$871.80 million	2.98	-$556.48 million	($4.22)	-1.03
CubeSmart	$1.06 billion	10.66	$410.76 million	$1.77	28.33

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

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for Medical Properties Trust and CubeSmart, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Medical Properties Trust	0	7	1	0	2.13
CubeSmart	1	6	4	0	2.27

Medical Properties Trust presently has a consensus target price of $5.58, indicating a potential upside of 28.95%. CubeSmart has a consensus target price of $51.36, indicating a potential upside of 2.44%. Given Medical Properties Trust’s higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Medical Properties Trust is more favorable than CubeSmart.

Summary

CubeSmart beats Medical Properties Trust on 13 of the 17 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Medical Properties Trust

Medical Properties Trust, Inc. is a self-advised real estate investment trust formed in 2003 to acquire and develop net-leased hospital facilities. From its inception in Birmingham, Alabama, the Company has grown to become one of the world's largest owners of hospital real estate with 441 facilities and approximately 44,000 licensed beds as of September 30, 2023. Since the end of the third quarter, the Company has sold four facilities and now owns approximately 43,000 licensed beds in nine countries across three continents. MPT's financing model facilitates acquisitions and recapitalizations and allows operators of hospitals to unlock the value of their real estate assets to fund facility improvements, technology upgrades and other investments in operations.

About CubeSmart

CubeSmart is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust. The Company's self-storage properties are designed to offer affordable, easily accessible and, in most locations, climate-controlled storage space for residential and commercial customers. According to the 2023 Self-Storage Almanac, CubeSmart is one of the top three owners and operators of self-storage properties in the United States.