SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) versus Sotherly Hotels (NASDAQ:SOHO) Financial Survey

SBA Communications (NASDAQ:SBAC) and Sotherly Hotels (NASDAQ:SOHO) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their valuation, dividends, profitability, risk, earnings, analyst recommendations and institutional ownership.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

97.4% of SBA Communications shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 27.5% of Sotherly Hotels shares are held by institutional investors. 1.3% of SBA Communications shares are held by company insiders. Comparatively, 15.9% of Sotherly Hotels shares are held by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a company is poised for long-term growth.

Risk & Volatility

SBA Communications has a beta of 0.68, suggesting that its stock price is 32% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Sotherly Hotels has a beta of 1.66, suggesting that its stock price is 66% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares SBA Communications and Sotherly Hotels”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
SBA Communications	$2.71 billion	8.75	$501.81 million	$6.34	34.80
Sotherly Hotels	$173.84 million	0.12	$3.94 million	($0.33)	-3.06

SBA Communications has higher revenue and earnings than Sotherly Hotels. Sotherly Hotels is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than SBA Communications, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares SBA Communications and Sotherly Hotels’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
SBA Communications	25.76%	-13.13%	6.83%
Sotherly Hotels	0.92%	3.48%	0.41%

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of current recommendations and price targets for SBA Communications and Sotherly Hotels, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
SBA Communications	0	3	9	1	2.85
Sotherly Hotels	0	1	0	0	2.00

SBA Communications currently has a consensus target price of $257.23, indicating a potential upside of 16.57%. Sotherly Hotels has a consensus target price of $1.50, indicating a potential upside of 48.51%. Given Sotherly Hotels’ higher probable upside, analysts clearly believe Sotherly Hotels is more favorable than SBA Communications.

Summary

SBA Communications beats Sotherly Hotels on 11 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About SBA Communications

SBA Communications Corporation is a leading independent owner and operator of wireless communications infrastructure including towers, buildings, rooftops, distributed antenna systems (DAS) and small cells. With a portfolio of more than 39,000 communications sites throughout the Americas, Africa and in Asia, SBA is listed on NASDAQ under the symbol SBAC. Our organization is part of the S&P 500 and is one of the top Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) by market capitalization.

About Sotherly Hotels

Sotherly Hotels Inc. is a self-managed and self-administered lodging REIT focused on the acquisition, renovation, upbranding and repositioning of upscale to upper-upscale full-service hotels in the Southern United States. Sotherly may also opportunistically acquire hotels throughout the United States. Currently, the Company's portfolio consists of investments in ten hotel properties, comprising 2,786 rooms, as well as interests in two condominium hotels and their associated rental programs. The Company owns hotels that operate under the Hilton Worldwide and Hyatt Hotels Corporation brands, as well as independent hotels. Sotherly Hotels Inc. was organized in 2004 and is headquartered in Williamsburg, Virginia.