Critical Contrast: JBG SMITH Properties (NYSE:JBGS) & Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE:BDN)

JBG SMITH Properties (NYSE:JBGS) and Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE:BDN) are both small-cap real estate companies, but which is the better business? We will contrast the two businesses based on the strength of their risk, valuation, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations, earnings and profitability.

Profitability

This table compares JBG SMITH Properties and Brandywine Realty Trust’s net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
JBG SMITH Properties	-29.89%	-13.31%	-3.49%
Brandywine Realty Trust	-28.62%	-18.52%	-4.07%

Valuation & Earnings

This table compares JBG SMITH Properties and Brandywine Realty Trust”s top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
JBG SMITH Properties	$498.60 million	1.32	-$139.06 million	($2.61)	-4.31
Brandywine Realty Trust	$498.29 million	1.02	-$178.25 million	($0.82)	-3.54

JBG SMITH Properties has higher revenue and earnings than Brandywine Realty Trust. JBG SMITH Properties is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Brandywine Realty Trust, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Risk and Volatility

JBG SMITH Properties has a beta of 1.07, indicating that its stock price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Brandywine Realty Trust has a beta of 1.29, indicating that its stock price is 29% more volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

JBG SMITH Properties pays an annual dividend of $0.70 per share and has a dividend yield of 6.2%. Brandywine Realty Trust pays an annual dividend of $0.32 per share and has a dividend yield of 11.0%. JBG SMITH Properties pays out -26.8% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Brandywine Realty Trust pays out -39.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Both companies have healthy payout ratios and should be able to cover their dividend payments with earnings for the next several years. Brandywine Realty Trust is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a breakdown of recent ratings and target prices for JBG SMITH Properties and Brandywine Realty Trust, as provided by MarketBeat.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
JBG SMITH Properties	3	0	0	0	1.00
Brandywine Realty Trust	3	3	0	0	1.50

JBG SMITH Properties presently has a consensus target price of $16.67, indicating a potential upside of 48.11%. Brandywine Realty Trust has a consensus target price of $3.50, indicating a potential upside of 20.48%. Given JBG SMITH Properties’ higher probable upside, research analysts clearly believe JBG SMITH Properties is more favorable than Brandywine Realty Trust.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

98.5% of JBG SMITH Properties shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 87.3% of Brandywine Realty Trust shares are owned by institutional investors. 11.9% of JBG SMITH Properties shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 4.5% of Brandywine Realty Trust shares are owned by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, endowments and hedge funds believe a stock will outperform the market over the long term.

Summary

JBG SMITH Properties beats Brandywine Realty Trust on 8 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.

About JBG SMITH Properties

JBG SMITH Properties is a real estate investment trust, which engages in owning, operating, investing in, and developing a portfolio of mixed-use properties. It operates through the following segments: Multifamily, Commercial, and Other. The Multifamily segment refers to the commercial buildings with public areas, retail spaces, and walkable streets. The Commercial segment rents to federal government tenants. The Other segment relates to development assets, corporate entities, land assets for which are the ground lessor and the elimination of inter-segment activity. The company was founded on October 27, 2016, and is headquartered in Bethesda, MD.

About Brandywine Realty Trust

Brandywine Realty Trust (NYSE: BDN) is one of the largest, publicly traded, full-service, integrated real estate companies in the United States with a core focus in the Philadelphia and Austin markets. Organized as a real estate investment trust (REIT), we own, develop, lease and manage an urban, town center and transit-oriented portfolio comprising 160 properties and 22.6 million square feet as of September 30, 2023 which excludes assets held for sale. Our purpose is to shape, connect and inspire the world around us through our expertise, the relationships we foster, the communities in which we live and work, and the history we build together.