National Health Investors (NYSE:NHI) vs. Lument Finance Trust (NYSE:LFT) Head-To-Head Contrast

Lument Finance Trust (NYSE:LFT) and National Health Investors (NYSE:NHI) are both finance companies, but which is the better stock? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their analyst recommendations, valuation, institutional ownership, risk, profitability, dividends and earnings.

Profitability

This table compares Lument Finance Trust and National Health Investors’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

	Net Margins	Return on Equity	Return on Assets
Lument Finance Trust	17.02%	9.23%	1.31%
National Health Investors	42.40%	10.65%	5.41%

Earnings & Valuation

This table compares Lument Finance Trust and National Health Investors’ top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

	Gross Revenue	Price/Sales Ratio	Net Income	Earnings Per Share	Price/Earnings Ratio
Lument Finance Trust	$30.27 million	3.87	$19.72 million	$0.30	7.47
National Health Investors	$319.83 million	8.61	$135.65 million	$3.13	20.27

National Health Investors has higher revenue and earnings than Lument Finance Trust. Lument Finance Trust is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than National Health Investors, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Insider and Institutional Ownership

19.5% of Lument Finance Trust shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 62.5% of National Health Investors shares are owned by institutional investors. 2.5% of Lument Finance Trust shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 8.2% of National Health Investors shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that endowments, large money managers and hedge funds believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.

Volatility and Risk

Lument Finance Trust has a beta of 1.07, meaning that its share price is 7% more volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, National Health Investors has a beta of 0.95, meaning that its share price is 5% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Dividends

Lument Finance Trust pays an annual dividend of $0.28 per share and has a dividend yield of 12.5%. National Health Investors pays an annual dividend of $3.60 per share and has a dividend yield of 5.7%. Lument Finance Trust pays out 93.3% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. National Health Investors pays out 115.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend, suggesting it may not have sufficient earnings to cover its dividend payment in the future. Lument Finance Trust has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years and National Health Investors has raised its dividend for 1 consecutive years. Lument Finance Trust is clearly the better dividend stock, given its higher yield and lower payout ratio.

Analyst Recommendations

This is a summary of recent ratings and recommmendations for Lument Finance Trust and National Health Investors, as provided by MarketBeat.com.

	Sell Ratings	Hold Ratings	Buy Ratings	Strong Buy Ratings	Rating Score
Lument Finance Trust	0	0	2	0	3.00
National Health Investors	0	4	4	0	2.50

Lument Finance Trust currently has a consensus target price of $2.63, suggesting a potential upside of 17.19%. National Health Investors has a consensus target price of $60.50, suggesting a potential downside of 4.65%. Given Lument Finance Trust’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, analysts plainly believe Lument Finance Trust is more favorable than National Health Investors.

Summary

National Health Investors beats Lument Finance Trust on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Lument Finance Trust

Lument Finance Trust, Inc., a real estate investment trust, focuses on investing in, financing, and managing a portfolio of commercial real estate (CRE) debt investments in the United States. The company primarily invests in transitional floating rate CRE mortgage loans on middle market multi-family assets; and other CRE -related investments, including mezzanine loans, preferred equity, commercial mortgage-backed securities, fixed rate loans, construction loans, and other CRE debt instruments. Lument Finance Trust, Inc. is qualified as a real estate investment trust (REIT) under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. As a REIT, it would not be subject to federal income taxes if it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its stockholders. The company was formerly known as Hunt Companies Finance Trust, Inc. and changed its name to Lument Finance Trust, Inc. in December 2020. Lument Finance Trust, Inc. was incorporated in 2012 and is headquartered in New York, New York.

About National Health Investors

Incorporated in 1991, National Health Investors, Inc. (NYSE:NHI) is a real estate investment trust specializing in sale, leasebacks, joint-ventures, senior housing operating partnerships, and mortgage and mezzanine financing of need-driven and discretionary senior housing and medical investments. NHI's portfolio consists of independent living, assisted living and memory care communities, entrance-fee retirement communities, skilled nursing facilities, and specialty hospitals.