Critical Comparison: Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) vs. Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG)

Simon Property Group (NYSE:SPG) and Brixmor Property Group (NYSE:BRX) are both real estate companies, but which is the better investment? We will compare the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, analyst recommendations and dividends.

Volatility and Risk

Simon Property Group has a beta of 1.3, meaning that its stock price is 30% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Brixmor Property Group has a beta of 0.97, meaning that its stock price is 3% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares Simon Property Group and Brixmor Property Group”s gross revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Simon Property Group	$6.36 billion	10.73	$4.63 billion	$14.18	14.88
Brixmor Property Group	$1.37 billion	6.35	$386.23 million	$1.40	20.27

Simon Property Group has higher revenue and earnings than Brixmor Property Group. Simon Property Group is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Brixmor Property Group, 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 Simon Property Group and Brixmor Property Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Simon Property Group	0	13	4	1	2.33
Brixmor Property Group	0	3	9	2	2.93

Simon Property Group presently has a consensus price target of $224.07, indicating a potential upside of 6.16%. Brixmor Property Group has a consensus price target of $33.14, indicating a potential upside of 16.77%. Given Brixmor Property Group’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts clearly believe Brixmor Property Group is more favorable than Simon Property Group.

Profitability

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

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Simon Property Group	66.56%	89.32%	12.03%
Brixmor Property Group	30.82%	14.38%	4.77%

Dividends

Simon Property Group pays an annual dividend of $9.00 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.3%. Brixmor Property Group pays an annual dividend of $1.23 per share and has a dividend yield of 4.3%. Simon Property Group pays out 63.5% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Brixmor Property Group pays out 87.9% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Simon Property Group has increased its dividend for 4 consecutive years and Brixmor Property Group has increased its dividend for 5 consecutive years. Brixmor Property Group is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and longer track record of dividend growth.

Institutional & Insider Ownership

93.0% of Simon Property Group shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 98.4% of Brixmor Property Group shares are held by institutional investors. 8.7% of Simon Property Group shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 0.9% of Brixmor Property Group shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, hedge funds and large money managers believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

Simon Property Group beats Brixmor Property Group on 10 of the 18 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Simon Property Group

Simon Property Group, Inc. (NYSE:SPG) is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT). Simon Property Group, L.P., or the Operating Partnership, is our majority-owned partnership subsidiary that owns all of our real estate properties and other assets. In this package, the terms Simon, we, our, or the Company refer to Simon Property Group, Inc., the Operating Partnership, and its subsidiaries. We own, develop and manage premier shopping, dining, entertainment and mixed-use destinations, which consist primarily of malls, Premium Outlets, The Mills, and International Properties. At June 30, 2024, we owned or had an interest in 230 properties comprising 183 million square feet in North America, Asia and Europe. We also owned an 84% interest in The Taubman Realty Group, or TRG, which owns 22 regional, super-regional, and outlet malls in the U.S. and Asia. Additionally, at June 30, 2024, we had a 22.4% ownership interest in Klépierre, a publicly traded, Paris-based real estate company, which owns shopping centers in 14 European countries.

About Brixmor Property Group

Brixmor Property Group, Inc. operates as a real estate investment trust, which engages in owning and operating a portfolio of grocery anchored community and neighborhood shopping centers. The company was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in New York, NY.