Analyzing National Health Investors (NYSE:NHI) & Rayonier (NYSE:RYN)

Rayonier (NYSE:RYN) and National Health Investors (NYSE:NHI) are both mid-cap construction companies, but which is the superior stock? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, profitability, earnings, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership and risk.

Profitability

This table compares Rayonier and National Health Investors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Rayonier	15.84%	2.95%	1.52%
National Health Investors	38.53%	10.11%	5.12%

Insider & Institutional Ownership

89.1% of Rayonier shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.5% of National Health Investors shares are held by institutional investors. 0.8% of Rayonier shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 7.3% of National Health Investors shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility & Risk

Rayonier has a beta of 1.05, meaning that its stock price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, National Health Investors has a beta of 1.05, meaning that its stock price is 5% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Rayonier and National Health Investors, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Rayonier	0	2	0	0	2.00
National Health Investors	0	3	4	0	2.57

Rayonier presently has a consensus price target of $33.00, suggesting a potential upside of 9.63%. National Health Investors has a consensus price target of $73.29, suggesting a potential downside of 6.30%. Given Rayonier’s higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Rayonier is more favorable than National Health Investors.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Rayonier and National Health Investors”s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Rayonier	$1.06 billion	4.24	$173.49 million	$1.06	28.40
National Health Investors	$328.89 million	10.80	$135.65 million	$2.91	26.88

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

Dividends

Rayonier pays an annual dividend of $1.14 per share and has a dividend yield of 3.8%. National Health Investors pays an annual dividend of $3.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.6%. Rayonier pays out 107.5% 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 123.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Summary

National Health Investors beats Rayonier on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Rayonier

Rayonier is a leading timberland real estate investment trust with assets located in some of the most productive softwood timber growing regions in the United States and New Zealand. As of December 31, 2023, Rayonier owned or leased under long-term agreements approximately 2.7 million acres of timberlands located in the U.S. South (1.85 million acres), U.S. Pacific Northwest (418,000 acres) and New Zealand (421,000 acres).

About National Health Investors

Incorporated in 1991, National Health Investors, Inc. (NYSE:NHI) is a real estate investment trust specializing in sale, leasebacks, joint-ventures, senior housing operating partnerships, and mortgage and mezzanine financing of need-driven and discretionary senior housing and medical investments. NHI's portfolio consists of independent living, assisted living and memory care communities, entrance-fee retirement communities, skilled nursing facilities, and specialty hospitals.