Introduction

Skyline-Champion (SKY) is the second-largest manufactured home company in the US (the largest is Berkshire Hathaway's (BRK.A) Clayton), so I was surprised to find sparse coverage on SeekingAlpha, with the most recent article published nearly two years ago in January 2018.

Since then, Skyline merged with Champion to form Skyline-Champion and a chronic labor shortage in the construction industry is beginning to create longterm favorable tailwinds for off-site construction companies such as Skyline. As I build out an investment thesis for playing the growing housing and labor shortage, it seems appropriate to initiate coverage of the newly-minted Skyline-Champion on SeekingAlpha.

Skyline-Champion was formed by the merger between Skyline and Champion in June 2018 to create the second-largest US manufactured home company with 17% share of the market, according to the most recent investor deck (see slide pasted below). For reference, the largest is Clayton Homes with 47% (owned by Berkshire Hathaway), and the third is Cavco (CVCO) with 13%.

Slide from 20Q2 Investor Presentation

Skyline's business is organized into three reporting segments: "manufacturing and retail", "commercial", and "transportation". The manufacturing and retail segment is by far the largest, representing 93% of revenue. Manufacturing and retail is primarily HUD code manufactured homes. Transportation (i.e. shipping / logistics of manufactured homes) makes up 6%, and commercial (i.e. multi-tenant wood frame buildings such as hotels) makes up the remaining 1%. The product mix can be seen visually in the slide below taken from Skyline's most recent investor presentation. The mix of products cover a range of price points, but in general are well below the median US new-build price of $101/sqft. This positions Skyline to grow with the increasing unmet demand for more affordable housing.

Reporting Segments from FY19 10K

Slide from 20Q2 Investor Presentation

A snapshot of Skyline Champion's earnings breakdown (quarterly revenue, gross profit, EBITDA, Net Income, and FCF) is shown below to provide a quick visualization of growth and margins. For the most recent quarter, Skyline brought in $354M revenue and $31.4M EBITDA, corresponding to an EBITDA margin of 8.85%. Free cash flow was $20.5M. The balance sheet overall looks healthy with a 0.099 debt to equity ratio and $139M in working capital. Looking forward, analysts are estimating $1.54 EPS for FY2021 and $1.31 for FY2020, which represents 26% and 18% year over year growth respectively. This growth is expected to be driven partly by top line growth and partly through margin expansion. On the most recent conference call, CEO Mark Yost estimated that EBITDA margins can grow to 10% over the next 18 months.

Data by YChartsData by YCharts

Earnings Breakdown and Balance Sheet Breakdown.

The stock price is currently $31.45 following a tremendous 114% rally year-to-date. This gives a P/E ratio of 24 based on FY2020 earnings and 20 based on FY2021 earnings. These valuations are very high, especially considering that the manufactured home market is only expected to grow at a 6% CAGR over the next year and much of the earnings growth will be due to margin expansion resulting from cost synergies.

Despite the high valuation, there are some growth opportunities that could represent a substantial upside to current earnings estimates. These growth opportunities stem from the fact that an ongoing labor shortage in the construction industry is constraining the housing supply and driving up home prices. This creates a significant opportunity for Skyline Champion to leverage its existing national network of factories and distribution to meet some of this unmet demand. Factory-built housing is more insulated from the effects of national labor shortages because the factories are typically located in communities with ample labor, whereas on-site construction is at the mercy of the local labor dynamics near the job-site location. For example, factory labor in a rural setting costs $15-$20/hr vs. potential $50-$100/hr in more urban settings.

Light commercial (3-5 story apartment buildings or hotels) developers are beginning to adopt modular construction, which is an early proof point that the traditional industry is ready to transition toward factory-built buildings. The benefits for commercial construction are the aforementioned cost savings on labor but also shorter construction times which reduces carrying costs associated with the land / job-site and accelerates property revenue. Skyline-Champion has a small commercial segment (1% of revenue) that focuses on this type of construction. Most famously, Marriott has been strategically pushing the use of modular construction for its hotels with Skyline-Champion one of their preferred vendors. Despite the potential to scale this commercial business, Skyline-Champion has not put a lot of emphasis on this segment during recent conference calls, suggesting that this will not be a strategic growth area for the company.

It appears that Skyline-Champion is more focused on expanding into the single family home market, as it is starting to target builder-developers as a customer segment. This strategic effort is being conducted in earnest through Skyline's Genesis brand line of products scheduled to launch in early 2020. This product line is intended to be an off-site construction solution for builder-developers looking to target the gap between traditional site-built single family homes and traditional HUD homes. Single family home starts are approximately 10x higher vs. manufactured homes, creating a potentially huge new market for Skyline-Champion. If Skyline-Champion captured just 1% of the single family market (which is roughly equivalent to 10% of the manufactured home market), that would grow Skyline-Champion's top line by almost 60% (Skyline-Champion currently has 17% share of the manufactured home market). Single family homes also sell for a higher price per square foot creating further upside.

Finally, Skyline-Champion is experimenting with automation, which if successful could increase factory capacity and margins. This could also help insulate Skyline-Champion from the effects of the industry labor shortage by directly reducing Skyline's reliance on manual labor and also expanding the potential labor pool by reducing the physical strength required to work in the factory. It is hard to quantify the potential impact of automation as the technology is relatively new in the context of construction, especially for US manufactured homes. To this end, Skyline has deployed automation only at a single factory: it's new Leesville factory. From the most recent conference call, management views the deployment of automation at Leesville as an experiment, presumably which if successful would then be scaled to more of Skyline's legacy factories. Investors have relatively little data by which to judge this experiment other than recent conference call comments from Mark Yost saying that the "learning's gone phenomenally well" and that the "takeaways from that had been monumental and [Mark is] very impressed".

Skyline-Champion's stock is currently quite expensive based on earnings estimates (P/E of 24 based on FY2020, P/E of 20 based on FY2021) especially given that the manufactured home industry is only anticipated to grow at 6% year over year. This high valuation likely indicates that investors believe that some of Skyline's growth experiments will pay off--most notably entering the single family home market through its new Genesis product line aimed at single family home builder-developers. Other experiments that could result in new growth are Skyline's experimentation with automation and Skyline's experience with commercial modular construction. Ultimately as many of these experiments are in early stages I would recommend a wait and see approach, closely monitoring Skyline-Champion for positive developments on any of the above growth experiments.

Disclosure: I/we have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. I wrote this article myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I am not receiving compensation for it (other than from Seeking Alpha). I have no business relationship with any company whose stock is mentioned in this article.

See the original post:

Potentially Transformative: Skyline-Champion Experimenting With Off-Site Construction And Automation - Seeking Alpha

The Housing News Podcast is a weekly wrap of the top news stories by HousingWire CEO Clayton Collins.

Each week, HousingWire interviews financial services experts who can help make sense of the latest headlines, sponsored by our partners atArch MI.

This week, David Battany, the executive vice president of capital markets at Guild Mortgage, discuss the housing markets lack of significant inventory as well as the nations budding market for manufactured homes. Additionally, Battany explains what the industry needs to do to get more first-time homebuyers into homes.

Heres more detail on the topics of discussion this week:

This months Housing Market Index indicates homebuilder confidence fell 1 point to 70 points, according to theNational Association of Home BuildersandWells Fargo. Despite Novembers decline, the index shows the reading marks the second-highest level in 2019. That being said, Robert Dietz, the organizations chief economist, claims affordability woes continue to weaken potential growth.

As a lack of housing supply continues to be a top industry concern, many companies are looking for a solution to combat construction challenges. Guild Mortgage, which recently began leveraging Fannie Maes MH Advantage program, claims manufactured housing, or specially designated MH homes are the solution.

Home prices are rising with no signs of slowing, and affordability is getting worse each month, causing potential homebuyers to turn to family or even friends to come up with a down payment. The National Association of Realtors revealed that more than 30% of first-time homebuyers used down payment help from family and friends.

And here are links to the topics discussed:

1) U.S. homebuilder confidence weakens in Novemberhttps://www.housingwire.com/articles/u-s-homebuilder-confidence-weakens-in-november/

2)Guild Mortgage Announces MH Advantage, New Mortgage Program for Manufactured Homeshttps://www.guildmortgage.com/press-release/guild-mortgage-announces-mh-advantage-new-mortgage-program-manufactured-homes/

3) More first-time homebuyers enlisting help from family, friendshttps://www.housingwire.com/articles/more-first-time-homebuyers-enlisting-help-from-family-friends/

More here:

Housing News Podcast: Guild Mortgage's David Battany takes on the nation's homebuilding woes - HousingWire

Things are looking good in the Donovan Smith manufactured home community outside Lewes both literally and figuratively.

Residents were notified in October that planned lot rent increases had been halted after a Superior Court decision upheld an earlier arbitrators decision. This comes on the heels of improving resident-management relations, with both groups working together to improve the community.

Its unbelievable whats happening here, said resident Clara McNichol, who stepped down as president of the homeowners association in June to become the park manager, working for landowner KDM Development Corporation.

Requires a landowner to meet certain requirements before increasing rent. In the year before the increase, the landowner must not have been found in violation of any provision that threatens the health and safety of residents for more than 15 days after notification. The proposed rent increase must be directly related to operating, maintaining or improving the community, and the rent increase must be justified by one of eight factors: capital improvements, changes in taxes, changes in utilities, changes in insurance costs and financing, changes in operating and maintenance expenses, repairs other than ordinary wear and tear, market rent or rental assistance.

In the months since, shes worked with KDM to improve the park by removing abandoned and dilapidated homes, clearing nuisance trees and stumps, and beautifying the neighborhood.

More than a dozen rundown homes have been or will be removed. KDM has agreed to bring in new homes when the lots are ready.

I have a list of people who want homes, McNichol said. People are so excited about coming here.

Donovan Smith opened as a family campground in 1965, and sold to KDM in 1997.

Donovan Smith has a large seasonal population, but the number of full-time residents is increasing, said HOA Interim President Phil Young.

Were optimistic that with the demolition of 13 or more abandoned properties and the placement of new homes, our community will finally start to look better, he said.

Young has been a resident of the park since 2004. An HOA was formed a few years ago when residents frustrations with management began to boil over.

Rents on lots continued to increase, and citizen complaints were largely ignored, he said. Properties were outright abandoned by residents who were on fixed incomes who couldnt afford rising rents or to make repairs.

The landowner raised lot rents $30 per month in 2017. Residents fought the hike, but ultimately lost in a case in Delaware Supreme Court.

The landowner came back in 2018 with another rent increase. This time $60 per month. Residents again fought it. This time, they were successful.

In April 2018, an arbitrator said the owner had not met requirements to increase the rent. The decision was appealed by the landowner to Superior Court.

The matter was then stayed for more than a year while Judge Craig Karsnitz waited for Delaware Supreme Court to rule on two related cases, including Donovan Smiths 2017 case.

In the 2018 case, the arbitrator found the landowner did not prove the rent increase was directly related to operating, maintaining or improving the community. He also found the landowner did not prove market rent for justification of the increase.

By waiting for the decision from Delaware Supreme Court, Karsnitz determined the arbitrator erred on whether the rent increase was directly related to community expenses. Despite that, Karsnitz found, the arbitrator correctly judged that the landowner did not prove market rent to justify the increase.

With the legal proceedings behind them, McNichol said shes focused on adding new residents to the park while keeping the existing residents happy.

The more people we have, the more homes we have, the less we have to worry about a big rent increase again, she said.

A new rent structure has been introduced, she said, which keeps existing residents at the same rent while new residents pay a little more.

In the near future, Donovan Smith residents hope to connect to the Lewes Board of Public Works for water and sewer. Donovan Smiths septic systems are failing, McNichol said, and the community is willing to be annexed into Lewes to receive the citys services.

See original here:

Donovan Smith residents win fight to stop rent increase - CapeGazette.com

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich.

As we head into the week of Thanksgiving, were reflecting on the work of local organizations, that are changing peoples lives in the community.

In 2018, Mel Trotter Ministries helped nearly 500 men, women and kids secure housing, and nearly 200 people find jobs.

Charlene Donaldson, a hostess at Applebees, is one of the people who have benefited from Mel Trotters programs.

She treats each guest, you know every employee, like theyre family, said Lesley Morey, the Applebees general manager. I mean she's walked out of the store to give a customer a hug because she didnt say goodbye to them.

To Charlene, its much more than just a job. Its how she got her life back.

I've been on drugs on and off for 30 years, I've been through 10 treatment centers, Charlene said. I was on alcohol, smoking marijuana, smoking crack.

Shes from Michigan, but up until five years ago, she lived in Mississippi.

I was buying a house and everything and drugs got in the way, Charlene said. So I stopped working, couldn't pay the bills. And there was domestic violence in Mississippi, so I came back.

The bills didn't get any easier to pay, so she would stay with her daughters.

One day they told me that my granddaughter was pregnant," Charlene said. I took a look at myself, I'm like wow, if I'm gonna be a great grandmother I can't keep doing this to myself, because I was living a double life.

When she was ready, she turned to Mel Trotter's Step-Up recovery program.

That's a 90-day program, Charlene said. You can go to the next program which is job readiness.

Mel Trotter helped her create a resume, which was something she never had before.

Part of our job training program in partnership with the businesses around the community is to help individuals develop those soft skills that they need, to not only get a job, but to keep a job, said Dennis Van Kampen, the CEO of Mel Trotter.

Eighty-two percent of people who exit Mel Trotter's programs successfully still have housing a year later.

I knew that she'd had a tough life, you know that she'd struggled with addiction of some type, for most of her adulthood, which, that's a tough thing to kick, Morey said.

But Charlene graduated from Mel Trotter's program, and shes been two years sober since October.

This was my first stop, coming out the treatment center, Charlene said. I came here, and Mr. Les (Morey) hired me on the spot.

According to Morey, once he saw her interacting with people, he knew she'd be a great addition to the restaurant.

That kind of opened my eyes to see well, she's not the only one that's like this. A lot of other people could use a second chance, Morey said.

She's now able to have her family, consisting of four kids, 14 grandkids and two great-grandkids, stay at her very own apartment.

If we provide people with income, if we help them find housing, and if we build relationships, there is no reason why Grand Rapids couldn't solve homelessness, Van Kampen said.

The majority of Mel Trotters yearly funding comes in these last two months. Ninety percent of its money comes from individuals.

If you would like to learn more about the programs offered, make a donation, or see how you can help, head to Mel Trotters website.

Maria Lowery spends her days taking care of her 3-year-old son, Hezekiah, and 1-year-old daughter, Niamaia. Her daughter, specifically, has been a fighter from the beginning.

"She was 3 pounds, 9 ounces when we left the hospital," Maria said. "She has down syndrome, and with that came a lot of health complications, some lung conditions, a heart condition.

Every day, Niamaia is hooked up to an oxygen machine for treatments and takes a series of medications.

"This one is for her digestive issues, this one is for her lung issues," Maria said, as she dug through a basket of medicine. "She's also has some severe anemia, so she's on an iron supplement.

Niamaia is also completely tube-fed through a port on her stomach, which became necessary after discovering her silent aspiration condition.

"She gets five feedings a day out of this, and it goes for about an hour," Maria said. "So she's hooked up to that for five hours out of her day."

Maria cleans the tube twice a day and redoes all the bandages. Collectively, she spends about 10 hours a day caring for her daughter. Thankfully, Niamaia shares her mom's resilience.

It's a lot to deal with all day, but you know I'm just grateful that it's not worse because this time last year it was really, really bad," Maria said. "On the 1st of December is when our battle with homelessness started.

Maria Lowery was an insurance agent in Southern California, and after her grandma died, she decided to move back to Michigan with her son. Although she was closer to other family members, she didnt get the stability she was seeking.

I had a job interview two days after I got here for another insurance agency, but I was heavily pregnant," Maria said. "I ended up not being able to get that job, and I applied at everything in between.

She and her son were staying with a friend, and one thing happened after another.

"We actually got the eviction notice on the first of November, but our thought process was, we still have a month before the baby gets here, Maria said.

A week later, she went to a doctor's appointment and found out Niamaia had stopped growing. She needed to give birth that day.

After they were released from the hospital, there wasn't much time before they were forced out of the apartment, without another place to go.

My mom actually paid for us to stay at the Motel 6 down by the airport, and we were there for three weeks, and then my mom ran out of money," Maria said. "Then my uncle paid for us to stay at another hotel, called the Knights Inn.

Meanwhile, Niamaia was in and out of the hospital.

Everything emerged, once we became homeless," Maria said. "I found out about this silent aspiration week one, I found out about her lung conditions week three. I found out about how severe the damage to her lungs was, she has chronic lung disease, and she's had it since she was five weeks old. Her heart caused a lot of that damage."

A social worker at Helen DeVos Children's Hospital reached out to The Salvation Army, which paid for them to stay in a Hawthorn Suites hotel for a few days. Then Maria began receiving help from Family Promise of Grand Rapids and it's Pathway Home Initiative.

Families have their own private room, Mel Trotter gets to provide some of those ancillary services, they are dental and medical, they provide food," said Kate O'Keefe, the director of development and community engagement at Family Promise. "Then Family Promise provides that case management.

From Mel Trotter, Maria and her two kids went to The Deborah House, which is a safe haven for single or pregnant moms. Then, Maria got into Family Promise's Partners in Housing program.

My mom was dealing with homelessness in a different way, she was actually staying with a relative," Maria said. "So, we partnered together.

As part of the program, Family Promise buys and restores manufactured homes for $10,000 to provide affordable places for families to live.

Not only does the Lowery family get to call it home, but it will soon be theirs.

We then get a family into that home, and that family only has to pay the lot rent,"O'Keefe said. "They walk through our programming, and after nine months that family gets the title to the home.

In addition to the massive weight off her shoulders, Maria said pulling into her own driveway makes her heart full. And it means even more, for her kids.

My son loves it, and I'm very grateful for how old he is, that he didn't necessarily understand what we went through last year," Maria said, with tears filling her eyes. "He didn't understand what we went through. And my daughter, she has no idea, because she's so small.

For a family who's grown accustomed to fighting, this victory will lead to more.

I promised myself that at the beginning of the year, we will not spend another birthday, another holiday, the way we spent the one's last year, Maria said.

When it comes to Niamaia, she is on the road to recovery, eventually allowing her to go to daycare, so Maria can continue her education and return to work.

She's doing really, really well," Maria said. "She's starting to stand and trying to crawl, and she's just the light of my life right now."

Family Promise helps almost 1,000 people in Kent County each year, and 90% of its families find a new home. The organization has supported around 4,000 kids.

The organization also relies heavily on private donations, and this is a critical time of year for those donations. If you'd like to help or learn more about its programs, head to Family Promise's website.

Taking a closer look at the issue as a whole, homelessness is increasing in West Michigan.

According to the Coalition to End Homelessness, nearly 8,500 people in Kent County were homelessness at some point in 2018. Thats up around 1,400 since 2017. More than 2,700 of those people are kids.

Family homelessness numbers increased by nearly 8% from 2017 to 2018. Currently, more than 100 families are on the waiting list for shelter in Kent County. One of the biggest problems is the shortage of affordable housing.

"There are increases in the rental amounts and increases in the amount that people need to pay for new housing," said Wende Randall, the director of the Kent County Essential Needs Task Force. "But we're not seeing increases in wages across the board to keep pace with that. So we do see more families and people of color at risk of or experiencing homelessness than would be representative of our community."

Of the total number of people in families experiencing homelessness, 73% identified as African American, 24% identified as White and 13% identified as Hispanic.

Fifty-two percent of people who had one or more experiences of homelessness in 2018 reported living within three zip codes. Those are 49503, 49504, and 49507. There are several factors to consider, including median income, increased cost of housing and location of the largest shelters, all within those areas.

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Overcoming homelessness: West Michigan women share their stories - WZZM13.com

Zacks Investment Research lowered shares of Legacy Housing (NASDAQ:LEGH) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a report issued on Thursday morning, Zacks.com reports.

According to Zacks, Legacy Housing Corporation builds, sells and finances manufactured homes distributed through independent retailers and company-owned stores as well as directly to manufactured housing communities. It operates primarily in the southern United States. Legacy Housing Corporation is based in Bedford, Texas.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on LEGH. B. Riley initiated coverage on shares of Legacy Housing in a report on Friday, November 15th. They set a buy rating and a $18.00 target price for the company. Oak Ridge Finl. restated a buy rating on shares of Legacy Housing in a report on Thursday, August 15th. Finally, Lake Street Capital started coverage on shares of Legacy Housing in a report on Tuesday, September 17th. They issued a buy rating for the company.

Legacy Housing (NASDAQ:LEGH) last released its earnings results on Friday, November 15th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the Thomson Reuters consensus estimate of $0.32 by ($0.07). Legacy Housing had a net margin of 15.45% and a return on equity of 12.12%. The business had revenue of $41.94 million for the quarter, compared to analysts expectations of $44.22 million. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that Legacy Housing will post 1.13 EPS for the current fiscal year.

In other Legacy Housing news, CEO Kenneth E. Shipley sold 3,350 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $16.13, for a total transaction of $54,035.50. Also, Chairman Curtis Drew Hodgson sold 39,692 shares of the businesss stock in a transaction on Monday, August 26th. The shares were sold at an average price of $12.87, for a total transaction of $510,836.04. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last quarter, insiders have sold 1,670,453 shares of company stock valued at $23,933,789. Company insiders own 49.10% of the companys stock.

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Russell Investments Group Ltd. grew its position in shares of Legacy Housing by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Russell Investments Group Ltd. now owns 580,528 shares of the companys stock valued at $9,404,000 after acquiring an additional 5,971 shares during the period. GW&K Investment Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of Legacy Housing during the 2nd quarter valued at $4,899,000. BlackRock Inc. grew its position in shares of Legacy Housing by 31.4% during the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 266,888 shares of the companys stock valued at $3,322,000 after acquiring an additional 63,750 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of Legacy Housing by 10.9% during the 2nd quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 237,459 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,956,000 after acquiring an additional 23,332 shares during the period. Finally, Boston Partners grew its position in shares of Legacy Housing by 166.4% during the 2nd quarter. Boston Partners now owns 203,258 shares of the companys stock valued at $2,531,000 after acquiring an additional 126,958 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 16.53% of the companys stock.

About Legacy Housing

Legacy Housing Corporation builds, sells, and finances manufactured homes and tiny houses primarily in the southern United States. The company manufactures and provides for the transport of mobile homes; and offers wholesale financing to dealers and mobile home parks, as well as a range of homes, including 1 to 5 bedrooms, with 1 to 3 1/2 bathrooms.

Further Reading: Support Level

Get a free copy of the Zacks research report on Legacy Housing (LEGH)

For more information about research offerings from Zacks Investment Research, visit Zacks.com

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Legacy Housing (NASDAQ:LEGH) Cut to Sell at Zacks Investment Research - Mitchell Messenger

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) and United Insurance (NASDAQ:UIHC) are both finance companies, but which is the superior investment? We will compare the two businesses based on the strength of their valuation, analyst recommendations, profitability, institutional ownership, risk, dividends and earnings.

Volatility & Risk

Progressive has a beta of 0.65, suggesting that its share price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, United Insurance has a beta of 1.15, suggesting that its share price is 15% more volatile than the S&P 500.

78.2% of Progressive shares are held by institutional investors. Comparatively, 36.6% of United Insurance shares are held by institutional investors. 0.4% of Progressive shares are held by insiders. Comparatively, 52.5% of United Insurance shares are held by insiders. Strong institutional ownership is an indication that hedge funds, endowments and large money managers believe a stock is poised for long-term growth.

Profitability

This table compares Progressive and United Insurances net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Earnings and Valuation

This table compares Progressive and United Insurances top-line revenue, earnings per share and valuation.

Progressive has higher revenue and earnings than United Insurance. Progressive is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than United Insurance, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Dividends

Progressive pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. United Insurance pays an annual dividend of $0.24 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.9%. Progressive pays out 9.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. United Insurance pays out 63.2% 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.

Analyst Ratings

This is a breakdown of current ratings and recommmendations for Progressive and United Insurance, as reported by MarketBeat.com.

Progressive currently has a consensus price target of $82.36, suggesting a potential upside of 16.28%. United Insurance has a consensus price target of $14.00, suggesting a potential upside of 11.64%. Given Progressives higher probable upside, equities analysts plainly believe Progressive is more favorable than United Insurance.

Summary

Progressive beats United Insurance on 11 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

About Progressive

The Progressive Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides personal and commercial auto insurance, residential property insurance, and other specialty property-casualty insurance and related services primarily in the United States. Its Personal Lines segment writes insurance for personal autos, and recreational and other vehicles. This segment's products include personal auto insurance; and special lines products, including insurance for motorcycles, ATVs, RVs, watercrafts, and snowmobiles. The company's Commercial Lines segment provides primary liability, physical damage, and other auto-related insurance for autos, vans, pick-up trucks, and dump trucks used by small businesses; tractors, trailers, and straight trucks primarily used by regional general freight and expeditor-type businesses, and non-fleet long-haul operators; dump trucks, log trucks, and garbage trucks used by dirt, sand and gravel, logging, and coal-type businesses; tow trucks and wreckers used in towing services and gas/service station businesses; and non-fleet taxis, black-car services, and airport taxis. Its Property segment provides residential property insurance for homes, condos, manufactured homes, and renters, as well as offers personal umbrella insurance, and primary and excess flood insurance. The company also offers policy issuance and claims adjusting services; home, condominium, renters, and other insurance; and general liability and business owner's policies, and workers' compensation insurance. In addition, it offers reinsurance services. The Progressive Corporation sells its products and services through independent insurance agencies, as well as directly on Internet, and mobile devices, and over the phone. The company was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Mayfield Village, Ohio.

About United Insurance

United Insurance Holdings Corp. operates as a property and casualty insurance holding company that sources, writes, and services residential personal and commercial property, and casualty insurance policies in the United States. The company offers structure, content, and liability coverage for standard single-family homeowners, renters, and condominium unit owners, as well as dwelling fire policies. It also provides commercial multi-peril property insurance for residential condominium associations, as well as loss or damage to buildings, inventory, or equipment caused by covered cause of loss, such as fire, wind, hail, water, theft, and vandalism. In addition, the company offers flood, equipment breakdown, and identity theft policies. It markets and distributes its products through a network of independent agencies in Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Louisiana, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Texas. United Insurance Holdings Corp. was founded in 1999 and is headquartered in St. Petersburg, Florida.

Receive News & Ratings for Progressive Daily - Enter your email address below to receive a concise daily summary of the latest news and analysts' ratings for Progressive and related companies with MarketBeat.com's FREE daily email newsletter.

See the article here:

Head to Head Review: Progressive (NYSE:PGR) vs. United Insurance (NYSE:UIHC) - Mitchell Messenger

Progressive (NYSE:PGR) and Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) are both finance companies, but which is the superior stock? We will contrast the two companies based on the strength of their profitability, valuation, risk, dividends, institutional ownership, analyst recommendations and earnings.

Dividends

Progressive pays an annual dividend of $0.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 0.6%. Hanover Insurance Group pays an annual dividend of $2.40 per share and has a dividend yield of 1.8%. Progressive pays out 9.0% of its earnings in the form of a dividend. Hanover Insurance Group pays out 35.3% 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.

Valuation and Earnings

This table compares Progressive and Hanover Insurance Groups top-line revenue, earnings per share (EPS) and valuation.

Progressive has higher revenue and earnings than Hanover Insurance Group. Progressive is trading at a lower price-to-earnings ratio than Hanover Insurance Group, indicating that it is currently the more affordable of the two stocks.

Profitability

This table compares Progressive and Hanover Insurance Groups net margins, return on equity and return on assets.

Institutional and Insider Ownership

78.2% of Progressive shares are owned by institutional investors. Comparatively, 84.9% of Hanover Insurance Group shares are owned by institutional investors. 0.4% of Progressive shares are owned by insiders. Comparatively, 1.7% of Hanover Insurance Group shares are owned 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.

Risk & Volatility

Progressive has a beta of 0.65, suggesting that its share price is 35% less volatile than the S&P 500. Comparatively, Hanover Insurance Group has a beta of 0.55, suggesting that its share price is 45% less volatile than the S&P 500.

Analyst Ratings

This is a summary of recent ratings and price targets for Progressive and Hanover Insurance Group, as provided by MarketBeat.

Progressive presently has a consensus target price of $82.36, suggesting a potential upside of 16.28%. Hanover Insurance Group has a consensus target price of $118.71, suggesting a potential downside of 11.15%. Given Progressives higher possible upside, equities analysts clearly believe Progressive is more favorable than Hanover Insurance Group.

Summary

Progressive beats Hanover Insurance Group on 9 of the 16 factors compared between the two stocks.

Progressive Company Profile

The Progressive Corporation, through its subsidiaries, provides personal and commercial auto insurance, residential property insurance, and other specialty property-casualty insurance and related services primarily in the United States. Its Personal Lines segment writes insurance for personal autos, and recreational and other vehicles. This segment's products include personal auto insurance; and special lines products, including insurance for motorcycles, ATVs, RVs, watercrafts, and snowmobiles. The company's Commercial Lines segment provides primary liability, physical damage, and other auto-related insurance for autos, vans, pick-up trucks, and dump trucks used by small businesses; tractors, trailers, and straight trucks primarily used by regional general freight and expeditor-type businesses, and non-fleet long-haul operators; dump trucks, log trucks, and garbage trucks used by dirt, sand and gravel, logging, and coal-type businesses; tow trucks and wreckers used in towing services and gas/service station businesses; and non-fleet taxis, black-car services, and airport taxis. Its Property segment provides residential property insurance for homes, condos, manufactured homes, and renters, as well as offers personal umbrella insurance, and primary and excess flood insurance. The company also offers policy issuance and claims adjusting services; home, condominium, renters, and other insurance; and general liability and business owner's policies, and workers' compensation insurance. In addition, it offers reinsurance services. The Progressive Corporation sells its products and services through independent insurance agencies, as well as directly on Internet, and mobile devices, and over the phone. The company was founded in 1937 and is headquartered in Mayfield Village, Ohio.

Hanover Insurance Group Company Profile

The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc., through its subsidiaries, provides various property and casualty insurance products and services in the United States. The company operates in three segments: Commercial Lines, Personal Lines, and Other. The Commercial Lines segment offers commercial multiple peril, commercial automobile, workers' compensation, umbrella, healthcare, mono-line general liability, and miscellaneous commercial property insurance products; and other commercial coverages, including inland marine, specialty program business, management and professional liability, surety, and specialty property. The Personal Lines segment provides personal automobile and homeowner's coverages, as well as other personal coverages, such as personal inland marine, umbrella, fire, personal watercraft, earthquake, and other miscellaneous coverages. The Other segment offers investment management and advisory services to institutions, pension funds, and other organizations. The company markets its products and services through independent agents and brokers. The Hanover Insurance Group, Inc. was founded in 1852 and is headquartered in Worcester, Massachusetts.

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Head to Head Survey: Progressive (NYSE:PGR) versus Hanover Insurance Group (NYSE:THG) - Riverton Roll

What is a Manufactured Home

Some people use the terms manufactured home, modular home and mobile home interchangeably. However, it is important for consumers to know the differences in these construction terms before they begin shopping for a new home. A manufactured home, or a mobile home as it was commonly called prior to 1976, is a home that is constructed almost entirely within the protection of a factory. It is built on a specially designed steel frame (or chassis) and delivered to the final home site virtually completed. Some refer to these as HUD code homes because following 1976, their construction requirements and inspection have been regulated by the Federal Housing and Urban Development (HUD) Association as defined in the HUD Title 6 Construction Standards.

Here is a list of links to our Cavco home builders who build and sell manufactured homes.

The manufactured home is built on a steel supporting frame in an environmentally protected building space. When it is 90 to 100% complete, it is then transported to the building site. Once the home has been installed and inspected, the wheels on the steel frame can be removed, but the steel frame remains in place.

Building Codes for Manufactured Homes

In the United States, HUD (the US Department of Housing and Urban Development) regulates manufactured housing through the HUD Code instead of local building codes. Each home must meet these federal guidelines and inspections rather than the local building codes of the area where the home is built. After each home or segment of a home is built and inspected, it is labeled with a red tag that is the manufacturers guarantee the home was built to conform to the HUD code.

A manufactured home can come in many different sizes and shapes. It may be a simple one-story mobile home, or it can be a complex tripewide with lots of custom features.

Typically, however, our manufactured homes are priced significantly less than their site-built counterparts due to the efficiencies of scale created by building the complete home in one location with a skilled, experienced building crew.

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Excerpt from:

Manufactured Homes | Cavco Industries, Inc.

A modern "triple wide" home

Manufactured housing (commonly known as mobile homes in the United States) is a type of prefabricated housing that is largely assembled in factories and then transported to sites of use. The definition of the term in the United States is regulated by federal law (Code of Federal Regulations, 24 CFR 3280): "Manufactured homes are built as dwelling units of at least 320 square feet (30m2) in size with a permanent chassis to assure the initial and continued transportability of the home."[1] The requirement to have a wheeled chassis permanently attached differentiates "manufactured housing" from other types of prefabricated homes, such as modular homes.

According to the Manufactured Housing Institutes National Communities Council (MHINCC), manufactured homes[2]

are homes built entirely in the factory under a federal building code administered by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The Federal Manufactured Home Construction and Safety Standards (commonly known as the HUD Code) went into effect June 15, 1976. Manufactured homes may be single- or multi-section and are transported to the site and installed.

The MHINCC distinguishes among several types of factory-built housing: manufactured homes, modular homes, panelized homes, pre-cut homes, and mobile homes.

From the same source, mobile home "is the term used for manufactured homes produced prior to June 15, 1976, when the HUD Code went into effect."[2] Despite the formal definition, mobile home and trailer are still common terms in the United States for this type of housing.

The original focus of this form of housing was its ability to relocate easily. Units were initially marketed primarily to people whose lifestyle required mobility. However, beginning in the 1950s, these homes began to be marketed primarily as an inexpensive form of housing designed to be set up and left in a location for long periods of time, or even permanently installed with a masonry foundation. Previously, units had been eight feet or less in width, but in 1956, the 10-foot (3.0m) wide home was introduced. This helped solidify the line between mobile and house/travel trailers, since the smaller units could be moved simply with an automobile, but the larger, wider units required the services of a professional trucking company. In the 1960s and '70s, the homes became even longer and wider, making the mobility of the units more difficult. Today, when a factory-built home is moved to a location, it is usually kept there permanently. The mobility of the units has decreased considerably.

The factory-built homes of the past developed a negative stereotype because of their lower cost and the tendency for their value to depreciate more quickly than site-built homes. The tendency of these homes to rapidly depreciate in resale value made using them as collateral for loans far riskier than traditional home loans. Loan terms were usually limited to less than the 30-year term typical of the general home-loan market, and interest rates were considerably higher. In other words, these home loans resembled motor vehicle loans far more than traditional home mortgages. They have been consistently linked to lower-income families, which has led to prejudice and zoning restrictions, which include limitations on the number and density of homes permitted on any given site, minimum size requirements, limitations on exterior colors and finishes, and foundation mandates.

Many jurisdictions do not allow the placement of any additional factory-built homes, while others have strongly limited or forbidden all single-wide models, which tend to depreciate in value more rapidly than modern double-wide models. The derogatory concept of a "trailer park" is typically older single-wide homes occupying small, rented lots and remaining on wheels, even if the home stays in place for decades.

Modern homes, especially modular homes, belie this image and can be identical in appearance to site-built homes. Newer homes, particularly double-wides, tend to be built to much higher standards than their predecessors. This has led to a reduction in the rate of value depreciation of many used units.

Although great strides have been made in terms of quality, manufactured homes do still struggle with construction problems. Author Wes Johnson has pointed out that the HUD code which governs manufactured homes desperately needs to be updated, quality control at manufacturing facilities are often lax, and set-up issues often compromise even a well-made manufactured home. Johnson states buyers need to be exceptionally cautious if they are entertaining the idea of purchasing any manufactured home by carefully checking it for defects before signing the contract and supervising the set-up process closely. These homes in the modern age are built to be beautiful and last longer than the typical old trailers.

When FEMA studied the destruction wrought by Hurricane Andrew in Dade County Florida, they concluded that modular and masonry homes fared best compared to other construction.[3]

While manufactured homes are considered to be affordable housing, older models can be some of the most expensive in the nation to heat due to energy inefficiency.[4] High-performance manufactured housing uses less energy and therefore increases life-cycle affordability by decreasing operating costs. High-performance housing is not only energy efficient, but also attractive, functional, water-efficient, resilient to wind, seismic forces, and moisture penetration, and has healthy indoor environmental quality. Achieving high-performance involves integrated, whole building design, involving many components, not one single technology. Highperformance manufactured housing should also include energy efficient appliances, such as Energy Star qualified appliances.[4] Energy Star requires ample insulation: 2x6 walls: R21, roof: R40, floor: R33.

Both types of homes - manufactured and modular - are commonly referred to as factory-built housing, but they are not identical. Modular homes are built to IRC code. Modular homes can be transported on flatbed trucks rather than being towed, and can lack axles and an automotive-type frame. However, some modular houses are towed behind a semi-truck or toter on a frame similar to that of a trailer. The house is usually in two pieces and is hauled by two separate trucks. Each frame has five or more axles, depending on the size of the house. Once the house has reached its location, the axles and the tongue of the frame are then removed, and the house is set on a concrete foundation by a large crane. Some modern modular homes, once fully assembled, are indistinguishable from site-built homes. In addition, modular homes:

Manufactured homes have several standard requirements that are more stringent than International Residential Code homes.

Fire Protection

A National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) study from July 2011 shows that occurrence of fires is lower in manufactured housing and the injury rate is lower in manufactured housing. The justification behind the superior fire safety is due to the following higher standard requirements:

The San Francisco Bay Area, located in Northern California, is known for its high real estate prices, making manufactured housing an increasingly popular alternative to traditional real estate.[6] It is mainly the value of the land that makes real estate in this area so expensive. As of May 2011, the median price of a home in Santa Clara was $498,000,[7] while the most expensive manufactured home with all the premium features was only $249,000.[8] This drastic price difference is due to the fact that manufactured homes are typically placed in communities where individuals do not own the land, but instead pay a monthly site fee. This enables a consumer, who could otherwise not afford to live in the Bay Area, the opportunity to own a new home in this location. There are various communities of manufactured homes in the Bay Area, the largest being Casa de Amigos, located in Sunnyvale, California.

Construction starts with the frame

Interior wall assemblies are attached

Exterior wall assemblies are set in place

Roof assembly is set atop the house

House is ready for delivery to site

In Australia these homes are commonly known as transportable homes, relocatable homes or prefabricated homes (not to be confused with the American meaning of the term). They are not as common as in the US, but the industry is expected to grow as this method of construction becomes more accepted.

Manufactured home parks refer to housing estates where the house owner rents the land instead of owning it. This is quite common in Queensland in both the form of tourist parks and over 50's estates. The term transportable homes tends to be used to refer to houses that are built on land that is owned by the house owner.[citation needed]

Typically the homes are built in regional areas where the cost of organizing tradespeople and materials is higher than in the cities. In particular prefabricated homes have been popular in mining towns or other towns experiencing demand for new housing in excess of what can be handled by local builders. This method of construction is governed by state construction legislation and is subject to local council approval and homeowners' warranty or home warranty insurance.

A manufactured home is built entirely inside a huge, climate-controlled factory by a team of craftsmen. The first step in the process is the flooring, which is built in sections, each attached to a permanent chassis with its own wheels and secured for transport upon the homes completion. Depending on the size of the house and the floorplans layout, there may be two, three or even four sections. The flooring sections have heating, electrical and plumbing connections pre-installed before they are finished with laminate, tile or hardwood. Next, the walls are constructed on a flat level surface with insulation and interior Sheetrock before being lifted by crane into position and secured to the floor sections. The interior ceilings and roof struts are next, vapor sealed and secured to each sections wall frame before being shingled. Then, the exterior siding is added, along with the installation of doors and windows. Finally, interior finishing, such as sealing the drywall, is completed, along with fixture installation and finishing the electrical and plumbing connections. The exposed portions of each section, where they will eventually be joined together, are wrapped in plastic to protect them for transport.

With all the building site prep work completed, the building will be delivered by trucks towing the individual sections on their permanent chassis. The sections will be joined together securely, and all final plumbing and electrical connections are made before a decorative skirt or facade is applied to the bottom exterior of the house, hiding the chassis and finishing off the look of the home.

Inside, paint and carpet are finished to design specifications, then the home is cleaned thoroughly.[9]

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Manufactured housing - Wikipedia

When you are buying a home, you might hear the terms modular homes, manufactured homes and site built homes. It's important to understand how they all differ, no matter whether you are purchasing an existing house or plan to build on land that is subject to restrictions. The differences can affect a home's price and its resale value, and even dictate whether or not it can be built on your land.

You might find this hard to believe, but the photograph on this page is of a modular home. It looks just like a regular house built on top of a slab with 2x4s, doesn't it? You cannot really tell the difference these days. Modular homes are typically very well built. Here are more facts about modular homes:

Restrictive Covenants and Deed Restrictions

Investigate the deed restrictions thoroughly before purchasing land for any type of new home. Further, obtain a copy of the Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions, also known as the CC&Rs for your new neighborhood. Study the plat map and know where your easement boundaries lie to make sure you do not place your modular home on top of any easements.

Shipping containers can also be called a modular home but they are generally very different from your typical modular home. A conventional modular home looks very much like a traditional stick-built home. It is hard to tell the difference. Whereas a shipping container home, constructed from an actual shipping container and not a replica, looks like a shipping container home, made from corrugated metal.

A single pod modular home built from a shipping container can be used as a cabin, getaway or tiny home. For more space, consider joining together two shipping containers.

At the time of writing, Elizabeth Weintraub, CalBRE #00697006, is a Broker-Associate at Lyon Real Estate in Sacramento, California.

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Modular vs Manufactured Homes - thebalance.com