Comparing Smartstop Self Storage REIT (SMA) and The Competition

Smartstop Self Storage REIT (NYSE:SMA) is one of 110 publicly-traded companies in the “REIT – EQTY TRUST – OTHER” industry, but how does it contrast to its rivals? We will compare Smartstop Self Storage REIT to similar businesses based on the strength of its profitability, valuation, earnings, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, dividends and risk.

Dividends

Smartstop Self Storage REIT pays an annual dividend of $1.58 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.9%. Smartstop Self Storage REIT pays out -427.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. As a group, “REIT – EQTY TRUST – OTHER” companies pay a dividend yield of 4.4% and pay out 254.5% of their earnings in the form of a dividend. Smartstop Self Storage REIT is clearly a better dividend stock than its rivals, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Insider & Institutional Ownership

76.0% of shares of all “REIT – EQTY TRUST – OTHER” companies are held by institutional investors. 5.5% of Smartstop Self Storage REIT shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 6.2% of shares of all “REIT – EQTY TRUST – OTHER” companies are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, large money managers and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Profitability

This table compares Smartstop Self Storage REIT and its rivals’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	4.38%	1.00%	0.54%
Smartstop Self Storage REIT Competitors	1.17%	1.59%	0.90%

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of current recommendations and price targets for Smartstop Self Storage REIT and its rivals, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	3	1	5	2	2.55
Smartstop Self Storage REIT Competitors	2411	8124	8498	305	2.35

Smartstop Self Storage REIT currently has a consensus price target of $36.94, indicating a potential upside of 13.42%. As a group, “REIT – EQTY TRUST – OTHER” companies have a potential upside of 4.85%. Given Smartstop Self Storage REIT’s stronger consensus rating and higher probable upside, equities analysts clearly believe Smartstop Self Storage REIT is more favorable than its rivals.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Smartstop Self Storage REIT and its rivals revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Net Income	Price/Earnings Ratio
Smartstop Self Storage REIT	$281.14 million	-$1.55 million	-88.04
Smartstop Self Storage REIT Competitors	$1.58 billion	$214.07 million	-0.10

Smartstop Self Storage REIT’s rivals have higher revenue and earnings than Smartstop Self Storage REIT. Smartstop Self Storage REIT is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than its rivals, indicating that it is currently more affordable than other companies in its industry.

Summary

Smartstop Self Storage REIT beats its rivals on 8 of the 14 factors compared.

Smartstop Self Storage REIT Company Profile

Symmetry Medical Inc. (Symmetry) is a medical device solutions company, including surgical instruments, orthopedic implants, and sterilization cases and trays. The Company designs, develops and offers worldwide production and supply chain capabilities for these products to customers in the orthopedic industry, and other medical device markets (including but not limited to arthroscopy, dental, laparoscopy, osteobiologic, and endoscopy segments). It also manufactures specialized non-healthcare products, primarily in the aerospace industry. The Company operates in two segments: original equipment manufacturer (OEM) solutions and symmetry surgical. On August 15, 2011, the Company acquired PSC Industries, Inc’s Olsen Medical division. On December 29, 2011 it acquired the surgical instruments product portfolio from Codman & Shurtleff, Inc., a Johnson & Johnson Company.