Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance (NASDAQ:REFI – Get Free Report) and Howard Hughes (NYSE:HHH – Get Free Report) are both finance companies, but which is the superior business? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their earnings, profitability, risk, analyst recommendations, dividends, institutional ownership and valuation.
Analyst Recommendations
This is a summary of current ratings and recommmendations for Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance and Howard Hughes, as reported by MarketBeat.
| Sell Ratings | Hold Ratings | Buy Ratings | Strong Buy Ratings | Rating Score | |
| Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3.50 |
| Howard Hughes | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 3.00 |
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance currently has a consensus target price of $20.00, suggesting a potential upside of 26.42%. Howard Hughes has a consensus target price of $82.00, suggesting a potential downside of 2.90%. Given Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance’s stronger consensus rating and higher possible upside, equities research analysts plainly believe Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance is more favorable than Howard Hughes.
Earnings & Valuation
| Gross Revenue | Price/Sales Ratio | Net Income | Earnings Per Share | Price/Earnings Ratio | |
| Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance | $57.15 million | 5.43 | $38.71 million | $1.98 | 7.99 |
| Howard Hughes | $1.02 billion | 4.13 | -$550.95 million | $1.51 | 55.93 |
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance has higher earnings, but lower revenue than Howard Hughes. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Howard Hughes, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.
Profitability
This table compares Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance and Howard Hughes’ net margins, return on equity and return on assets.
| Net Margins | Return on Equity | Return on Assets | |
| Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance | 63.27% | 13.29% | 10.10% |
| Howard Hughes | 6.57% | 3.28% | 1.03% |
Insider and Institutional Ownership
25.5% of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 93.8% of Howard Hughes shares are owned by institutional investors. 12.3% of Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance shares are owned by company insiders. Comparatively, 33.0% of Howard Hughes shares are owned by company insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that large money managers, hedge funds and endowments believe a company will outperform the market over the long term.
Risk and Volatility
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance has a beta of 0.21, indicating that its stock price is 79% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Howard Hughes has a beta of 1.46, indicating that its stock price is 46% more volatile than the S&P 500.
Summary
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance beats Howard Hughes on 9 of the 15 factors compared between the two stocks.
About Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance
Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. operates as a commercial real estate finance company in the United States. The company engages in originating, structuring, and investing in first mortgage loans and alternative structured financings secured by commercial real estate properties. Its portfolio primarily includes offers senior loans to state-licensed operators in the cannabis industry. The company has elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (REIT) and would not be subject to federal corporate income taxes if it distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its stockholders. Chicago Atlantic Real Estate Finance, Inc. was incorporated in 2021 and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
About Howard Hughes
Howard Hughes Holdings Inc., together with its subsidiaries, operates as a real estate development company in the United States. It operates in four segments: Operating Assets; Master Planned Communities (MPCs); Seaport; and Strategic Developments. The Operating Assets segment consists of developed or acquired retail, office, and multi-family properties along with other retail investments. Its MPCs segment develops, sells, and leases residential and commercial land designated for long-term community development projects in and around Las Vegas, Nevada; Houston, Texas; and Phoenix, Arizona. The Seaport segment is involved in the landlord operations, managed businesses, and events and sponsorships services of its restaurant, retail, and entertain properties in Pier 17, New York City; Historic Area/Uplands; and Tin Building, as well as in 250 Water Street and in the Jean-Georges restaurants. The Strategic Development segment develops and redevelops residential condominiums and commercial properties. It serves homebuilders. Howard Hughes Holdings Inc. was founded in 2010 and is headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas.
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