Comparing Global Self Storage (NASDAQ:SELF) and Rexford Industrial Realty (NYSE:REXR)

Rexford Industrial Realty (NYSE:REXR) and Global Self Storage (NASDAQ:SELF) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, institutional ownership, valuation, profitability, earnings, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Profitability

This table compares Rexford Industrial Realty and Global Self Storage’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rexford Industrial Realty	29.10%	3.26%	2.19%
Global Self Storage	25.47%	6.55%	4.73%

Risk and Volatility

Rexford Industrial Realty has a beta of 0.95, meaning that its stock price is 5% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Global Self Storage has a beta of 0.24, meaning that its stock price is 76% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

99.5% of Rexford Industrial Realty shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 28.9% of Global Self Storage shares are held by institutional investors. 1.2% of Rexford Industrial Realty shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.0% of Global Self Storage shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Dividends

Rexford Industrial Realty pays an annual dividend of $1.67 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.2%. Global Self Storage pays an annual dividend of $0.29 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.6%. Rexford Industrial Realty pays out 138.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Global Self Storage pays out 107.4% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Global Self Storage is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Rexford Industrial Realty and Global Self Storage”s top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rexford Industrial Realty	$936.41 million	9.50	$238.02 million	$1.21	33.07
Global Self Storage	$12.19 million	4.76	$2.94 million	$0.27	19.07

Rexford Industrial Realty has higher revenue and earnings than Global Self Storage. Global Self Storage is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Rexford Industrial Realty, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and price targets for Rexford Industrial Realty and Global Self Storage, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rexford Industrial Realty	1	7	3	0	2.18
Global Self Storage	0	0	1	0	3.00

Rexford Industrial Realty presently has a consensus target price of $49.42, suggesting a potential upside of 23.51%. Global Self Storage has a consensus target price of $6.50, suggesting a potential upside of 26.21%. Given Global Self Storage’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Global Self Storage is more favorable than Rexford Industrial Realty.

Summary

Rexford Industrial Realty beats Global Self Storage on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rexford Industrial Realty

Rexford Industrial Realty, Inc. is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust, which engages in owning and operating industrial properties in infill markets. The company was founded by Richard S. Ziman on January 18, 2013 and is headquartered in Los Angeles, CA.

About Global Self Storage

Global Self Storage is a self-administered and self-managed REIT that owns, operates, manages, acquires, and redevelops self-storage properties. The company's self-storage properties are designed to offer affordable, easily accessible and secure storage space for residential and commercial customers. Through its wholly owned subsidiaries, the company owns and/or manages 13 self-storage properties in Connecticut, Illinois, Indiana, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, and Oklahoma.