ALX vs BDN vs ESS Stock Comparison

Alexanders, Brandywine Realty Trust and Essex Property Trust Prices as of Oct 26, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ALX Alexanders Inc
$251.07 +1.4% 1M +7.0% 1Y
Market cap
$1.28B
P/E
7.6x
Revenue (TTM)
$214.80M
Div. yield
0.07%
Office REITs Real Estate
6 wins
BDN Brandywine Realty Trust
$2.91 +1.4% 1M -21.4% 1Y
Market cap
$506.59M
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$498.29M
Div. yield
–
Office REITs Real Estate
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Alexanders leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Alexanders 6, Essex Property Trust 3, Brandywine Realty Trust 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionALXBDNESSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $1.28B $506.59M $17.65B ESS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 7.6x -3.5x 42.6x ALX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 29.7x — 52.9x ALX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months -1.5% +0.5% +4.7% ESS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 79.1% -28.8% 21.5% ALX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 7.3% — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 1.0x 5.3x BDN
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.07% 0.00% 0.04% ALX
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +7.0% -21.4% +4.0% ALX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -2.3%/yr -26.1%/yr -4.2%/yr ALX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 28.0% 35.8% 20.2% ESS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 36/100 58/100 46/100 BDN

Percentile Scorecard

ALXBDNESS

Each axis is the mean percentile of its metrics against the company's industry group. 100 is the best in the group, 50 the middle.

Scores by Axis

AxisALXBDNESS
Valuation 31 #101 of 145 95 #8 of 145 13 #127 of 145
Growth 34 #94 of 142 19 #115 of 142 36 #92 of 142
Profitability 44 #76 of 136 24 #103 of 136 91 #13 of 136
Financial Health 9 #126 of 139 59 #58 of 139 51 #68 of 139
Shareholder Returns 59 #54 of 131 94 #9 of 131 39 #80 of 131
Overall 36 58 46
  • ALX ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • BDN ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • ESS ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs

Price Performance

Price return, split-adjusted, before dividends. Click a name to hide or show it.

Returns

PeriodALXBDNESSSPY
1 month +1.4%+1.4%+1.4% -0.8%
3 months -6.2%-5.5%-5.1% +3.5%
6 months +2.5%-3.0%+7.2% +7.0%
Year to date +15.2%-0.3%+5.2% +12.2%
1 year +7.0%-21.4%+4.0% +13.0%
3 years +40.1%-22.4%+33.3% +86.3%
3 years, per year +11.9%-8.1%+10.1% +23.1%
5 years -10.9%-77.9%-19.5% +68.6%
5 years, per year -2.3%-26.1%-4.2% +11.0%
10 years -35.0%-80.6%+32.7% +258.0%
10 years, per year -4.2%-15.1%+2.9% +13.6%

Risk

MeasureALXBDNESSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 28.0%35.8%20.2% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 30.5%34.1%21.9% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.230.580.12 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.25-0.600.20 1.02
Max drawdown, 5Y -44.5%-83.2%-45.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -12.4%-19.6%-7.7% -1.8%
52-week high $286.59$3.62$298.33 $779.14
52-week low $205.15$2.47$239.61 $631.97

Valuation History

Weekly multiples on trailing twelve-month fundamentals. Negative or extreme readings (a loss year, a collapsed denominator) are left out so the chart stays readable.

MultipleALXBDNESS
P/E now vs peer median 7.6xmedian 27.4x -3.5xmedian 27.4x 42.8xmedian 27.4x
P/S now vs peer median 6.0xmedian 4.2x 1.0xmedian 4.2x 9.2xmedian 4.2x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 14.2x 2.9xmedian 14.2x 19.5xmedian 14.2x
P/FCF now vs peer median 88.3xmedian 23.2x 58.4xmedian 23.2x 30.5xmedian 23.2x
P/B now vs peer median 5.7xmedian 1.3x 0.7xmedian 1.3x 3.2xmedian 1.3x
PEG now vs peer median 0.43median 2.11 0.04median 2.11 -5.33median 2.11

Financial History

Reported figures by fiscal period, placed on the calendar year (or quarter) each period ended in, so companies with different fiscal years line up.

Trailing twelve monthsALXBDNESS
Revenue $214.80M $498.29M $1.93B
Operating income – $73.79M $627.10M
Net income $169.82M -$143.21M $437.61M
Free cash flow $14.53M $8.70M $580.66M
EPS (diluted) $33.05 $-0.82 $6.44
Cash & equivalents $303.31M $37.87M $58.33M
Total debt $3.48B $1.07B $26.96B
Shares (diluted) 5.14M 174.38M 64.28M
Enterprise value $488.75M $324.75M $17.41B

All Metrics

58 metrics · best in bold

Bold marks the best reading: the lowest positive value for multiples, leverage and payout, the highest for everything else. The bar under each value is its percentile against that company's own peers. Hover a value for its rank and the peer median.

Valuation

12 metrics
MetricALXBDNESS
P/E 7.6x -3.5x 42.8x
P/FCF 88.3x 58.4x 30.5x
P/Operating cash flow 47.2x 4.2x 15.8x
P/S 6.0x 1.0x 9.2x
P/B 5.7x 0.7x 3.2x
P/Tangible book 5.7x 0.7x 3.2x
EV/EBITDA – 2.9x 19.5x
EV/EBIT – 10.3x 38.8x
EV/Revenue 8.4x 1.5x 12.6x
EV/FCF 124.8x 87.7x 41.9x
EV/Operating cash flow 66.8x 6.3x 21.8x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.43 0.04 -5.33

Growth

14 metrics
MetricALXBDNESS
Revenue growth (1Y) -1.5% 0.5% 4.7%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 0.2% -0.7% 5.2%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 639.1% -35.4%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – -12.4% -2.6%
Net income growth (1Y) 354.2% 56.1% -49.8%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 17.9% -97.3% -7.9%
EPS growth (1Y) 354.0% 56.2% -48.2%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 17.8% -97.9% -8.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -68.1% -18.7% 8.3%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) -28.8% -14.1% 5.4%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -74.4% -25.6% 344.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -38.2% -30.4% -3.3%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricALXBDNESS
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin – 53.2% 64.9%
Operating margin – 14.8% 32.5%
Pretax margin – -28.7% 18.9%
Net margin 79.1% -28.8% 21.5%
FCF margin 6.8% 1.7% 30.1%
Operating cash flow margin 12.6% 24.4% 58.0%
Return on equity – -20.0% 7.9%
Return on assets – -4.0% 3.4%
Return on invested capital – 7.3% –
Return on capital employed – – –
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.1x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 0.2x -0.9x 2.6x
Stock comp / revenue – 1.9% 0.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricALXBDNESS
Debt / assets 69.4% 8.3% 51.9%
Debt / equity 3.7x 0.4x 1.2x
Net debt / EBITDA – 1.0x 5.3x
Debt / FCF 57.4x 33.7x 11.5x
Liabilities / assets 81.4% 80.3% 57.5%
Equity / assets 18.6% 19.7% 42.5%
Interest coverage – – 2.4x
Current ratio – – –
Quick ratio – – –
Cash ratio – – –
Altman Z-score – – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricALXBDNESS
Dividend yield 7.2% 11.0% 3.8%
Net buyback yield – 0.4% 0.3%
Shareholder yield 7.2% 11.4% 4.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) 54.4% – 151.6%
Payout ratio (FCF) 636.3% – 114.2%
Dividend growth (1Y) 0.0% – 4.0%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 0.1% – 4.8%

Analyst Estimates

Solid lines are reported fiscal-year results; dashed lines are the consensus for the years ahead. Hover a year for the analysts' high and low, and how each result compared with its estimate.

ConsensusALXBDNESS
Forward P/E 29.7xFY2027 – 52.9xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $8.44FY2027 $-0.81FY2026 $5.21FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -31.2%FY2027 – -49.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – – +29.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $259.67MFY2026 $512.58MFY2026 $2.05BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +21.8%FY2026 +12.0%FY2026 +9.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -8.1% -15.9% -7.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersALXBDNESS
Held by institutions 38.9% 73.2% 100.0%
Institutions holding 153 232 630
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.7% +2.5% +4.7%
Institutions buying 71 130 348
Institutions selling 50 68 183
Buyers to sellers 1.42 1.91 1.90

Return Correlation

Daily returns, last 12 months

1.00 means two stocks move in lockstep, 0 that they move independently. Pairs below about 0.5 diversify each other.

ALXBDNESS
ALX 1.00 0.32 0.35
BDN 0.32 1.00 0.39
ESS 0.35 0.39 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ALX, BDN and ESS?

Essex Property Trust (ESS) is the largest by market capitalisation: Alexanders (ALX) $1.28B, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) $506.59M, Essex Property Trust (ESS) $17.65B.

Which stock is cheaper, ALX, BDN and ESS?

Alexanders (ALX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Alexanders (ALX) 7.6x, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) -3.5x, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 42.6x). On next year's consensus earnings, Alexanders (ALX) is cheapest (Alexanders (ALX) 29.7x, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 52.9x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Essex Property Trust (ESS) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Alexanders (ALX) -1.5%, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) +0.5%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) +4.7%.

Which company is more profitable?

Alexanders (ALX) has the highest net margin (Alexanders (ALX) 79.1%, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) -28.8%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 21.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Alexanders (ALX) returned the most: Alexanders (ALX) +7.0%, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) -21.4%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) +4.0%. Over five years, Alexanders (ALX) compounded fastest (Alexanders (ALX) -2.3%/yr, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) -26.1%/yr, Essex Property Trust (ESS) -4.2%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Alexanders (ALX) has the highest dividend yield: Alexanders (ALX) 0.07%, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) 0.00%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 0.04%. Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Essex Property Trust (ESS) has been the steadiest (Alexanders (ALX) 28.0%, Brandywine Realty Trust (BDN) 35.8%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 20.2%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, ALX, BDN and ESS?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Alexanders (ALX) leads on 6. Business Quant does not give investment advice; use the comparison as a starting point for your own research.

Data from SEC filings, exchange prices and consensus estimates, via Business Quant. Percentile scores compare each company with its own peer group, so two companies' scores are each relative to different peers unless you rank against the whole market. Price returns exclude dividends. Nothing on this page is investment advice.