Head to Head Contrast: Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) versus Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY)

Weyerhaeuser (NYSE:WY) and Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) are both large-cap construction companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their earnings, institutional ownership, profitability, valuation, risk, dividends and analyst recommendations.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Weyerhaeuser and Simon Property Group’s revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Weyerhaeuser	$7.67 billion	2.75	$839.00 million	$1.10	26.36
Simon Property Group	$5.66 billion	8.57	$2.28 billion	$7.85	18.96

Simon Property Group has lower revenue, but higher earnings than Weyerhaeuser. Simon Property Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Weyerhaeuser, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of current recommendations for Weyerhaeuser and Simon Property Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Weyerhaeuser	0	4	2	0	2.33
Simon Property Group	0	5	5	0	2.50

Weyerhaeuser presently has a consensus price target of $37.67, indicating a potential upside of 29.89%. Simon Property Group has a consensus price target of $147.60, indicating a potential downside of 0.83%. Given Weyerhaeuser’s higher probable upside, equities research analysts clearly believe Weyerhaeuser is more favorable than Simon Property Group.

Dividends

Weyerhaeuser pays an annual dividend of $0.80 per share and has a dividend yield of 2.8%. Simon Property Group pays an annual dividend of $8.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.4%. Weyerhaeuser pays out 72.7% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Simon Property Group pays out 101.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future.

Profitability

This table compares Weyerhaeuser and Simon Property Group’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Weyerhaeuser	10.57%	7.00%	4.14%
Simon Property Group	46.49%	78.50%	7.99%

Volatility and Risk

Weyerhaeuser has a beta of 1.43, suggesting that its share price is 43% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Simon Property Group has a beta of 1.71, suggesting that its share price is 71% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

83.0% of Weyerhaeuser shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.0% of Simon Property Group shares are held by institutional investors. 0.3% of Weyerhaeuser shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.5% of Simon Property Group shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Simon Property Group beats Weyerhaeuser on 12 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Weyerhaeuser

Weyerhaeuser Company, one of the world's largest private owners of timberlands, began operations in 1900. We own or control approximately 11 million acres of timberlands in the U.S. and manage additional timberlands under long-term licenses in Canada. We manage these timberlands on a sustainable basis in compliance with internationally recognized forestry standards. We are also one of the largest manufacturers of wood products in North America. Our company is a real estate investment trust. In 2022, we generated $10.2 billion in net sales and employed approximately 9,200 people who serve customers worldwide. Our common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol WY.

About Simon Property Group

Simon is a real estate investment trust engaged in the ownership of premier shopping, dining, entertainment and mixed-use destinations and an S&P 100 company (Simon Property Group, NYSE: SPG). Our properties across North America, Europe and Asia provide community gathering places for millions of people every day and generate billions in annual sales.