ESS vs ALX vs AMH Stock Comparison

Essex Property Trust, Alexanders and American Homes 4 Rent Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
ALX Alexanders Inc
$248.95 +0.5% 1M +5.2% 1Y
Market cap
$1.28B
P/E
7.5x
Revenue (TTM)
$214.80M
Div. yield
0.07%
Office REITs Real Estate
6 wins
AMH American Homes 4 Rent
$31.84 +3.9% 1M -4.7% 1Y
Market cap
$11.26B
P/E
24.2x
Revenue (TTM)
—
Div. yield
0.04%
Residential REITs Real Estate
1 win

Head to Head

10 decided of 12

Alexanders leads on 6 of the 12 questions below (Alexanders 6, Essex Property Trust 3, American Homes 4 Rent 1). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionESSALXAMHLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $16.92B $1.28B $11.26B ESS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 40.9x 7.5x 24.2x ALX
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 52.8x 29.5x 30.0x ALX
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +4.7% -1.5% — ESS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 21.5% 79.1% — ALX
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — — — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 5.3x — — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.04% 0.07% 0.04% ALX
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months +4.8% +5.2% -4.7% ALX
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -4.5%/yr -2.5%/yr -4.8%/yr ALX
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 20.1% 27.9% 20.3% ESS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 46/100 36/100 63/100 AMH

Percentile Scorecard

ESSALXAMH

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

AxisESSALXAMH
Valuation 12 #128 of 145 33 #98 of 145 50 #73 of 145
Growth 34 #93 of 141 33 #95 of 141 69 #45 of 141
Profitability 93 #10 of 134 46 #73 of 134 67 #45 of 134
Financial Health 51 #68 of 138 10 #125 of 138 61 #54 of 138
Shareholder Returns 38 #82 of 131 59 #55 of 131 68 #43 of 131
Overall 46 36 63
  • ESS ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • ALX ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • AMH ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodESSALXAMHSPY
1 month +1.2%+0.5%+3.9% -0.2%
3 months -6.7%-7.4%-5.7% +3.9%
6 months +2.6%-0.1%+1.1% +8.2%
Year to date +5.0%+14.2%-0.8% +12.9%
1 year +4.8%+5.2%-4.7% +12.3%
3 years +33.1%+38.9%+1.1% +87.4%
3 years, per year +10.0%+11.6%+0.4% +23.3%
5 years -20.5%-11.9%-21.7% +67.9%
5 years, per year -4.5%-2.5%-4.8% +10.9%
10 years +33.5%-35.1%+54.6% +261.1%
10 years, per year +2.9%-4.2%+4.5% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureESSALXAMHSPY
Volatility, 1Y 20.1%27.9%20.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 21.8%30.4%19.5% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.120.230.01 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y 0.240.19-0.23 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -45.4%-44.5%-37.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -7.9%-13.1%-8.5% -1.2%
52-week high $298.33$286.59$34.81 $779.14
52-week low $239.61$205.15$27.38 $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.

MultipleESSALXAMH
P/E now vs peer median 42.7xmedian 26.3x 7.5xmedian 26.3x 24.7xmedian 26.3x
P/S now vs peer median 9.2xmedian 4.0x 5.9xmedian 4.0x —median 4.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 19.4xmedian 14.4x —median 14.4x —median 14.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 30.4xmedian 23.3x 87.5xmedian 23.3x 1,102xmedian 23.3x
P/B now vs peer median 3.2xmedian 1.3x 5.7xmedian 1.3x 1.5xmedian 1.3x
PEG now vs peer median -5.32median 1.91 0.42median 1.91 2.55median 1.91

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 monthsESSALXAMH
Revenue $1.93B $214.80M –
Operating income $627.10M – –
Net income $437.61M $169.82M $542.82M
Free cash flow $580.66M $14.53M $10.37M
EPS (diluted) $6.44 $33.05 $1.29
Cash & equivalents $58.33M $303.31M $83.67M
Total debt $26.96B $3.48B $5.13B
Shares (diluted) 64.28M 5.14M 360.81M
Enterprise value $16.68B $482.07M $10.96B

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
MetricESSALXAMH
P/E 42.7x 7.5x 24.7x
P/FCF 30.4x 87.5x 1,102x
P/Operating cash flow 15.8x 46.8x 13.2x
P/S 9.2x 5.9x –
P/B 3.2x 5.7x 1.5x
P/Tangible book 3.2x 5.7x 1.5x
EV/EBITDA 19.4x – –
EV/EBIT 38.8x – –
EV/Revenue 12.6x 8.4x –
EV/FCF 41.9x 124.1x 1,589x
EV/Operating cash flow 21.7x 66.4x 19.1x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -5.32 0.42 2.55

Growth

14 metrics
MetricESSALXAMH
Revenue growth (1Y) 4.7% -1.5% –
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 5.2% 0.2% –
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) -35.4% – –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) -2.6% – –
Net income growth (1Y) -49.8% 354.2% 12.2%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -7.9% 17.9% 9.1%
EPS growth (1Y) -48.2% 354.0% 15.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -8.0% 17.8% 9.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 8.3% -68.1% 4.1%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 5.4% -28.8% 7.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 344.6% -74.4% 101.6%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) -3.3% -38.2% 26.4%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricESSALXAMH
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin 64.9% – –
Operating margin 32.5% – –
Pretax margin 18.9% – –
Net margin 21.5% 79.1% –
FCF margin 30.1% 6.8% –
Operating cash flow margin 58.0% 12.6% –
Return on equity 7.9% – 7.2%
Return on assets 3.4% – 4.1%
Return on invested capital – – –
Return on capital employed – – –
Asset turnover 0.1x 0.2x –
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 2.6x 0.2x 1.6x
Stock comp / revenue 0.6% – –

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricESSALXAMH
Debt / assets 51.9% 69.4% 39.1%
Debt / equity 1.2x 3.7x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 5.3x – –
Debt / FCF 11.5x 57.4x 494.5x
Liabilities / assets 57.5% 81.4% 43.0%
Equity / assets 42.5% 18.6% 57.0%
Interest coverage 2.4x – –
Current ratio – – –
Quick ratio – – –
Cash ratio – – –
Altman Z-score – – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricESSALXAMH
Dividend yield 3.8% 7.2% 4.1%
Net buyback yield 0.3% – 2.0%
Shareholder yield 4.1% 7.2% 6.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) 151.6% 54.4% 85.3%
Payout ratio (FCF) 114.2% 636.3% 4,462%
Dividend growth (1Y) 4.0% 0.0% 11.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 4.8% 0.1% 17.4%

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.

ConsensusESSALXAMH
Forward P/E 52.8xFY2026 29.5xFY2027 30.0xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $5.21FY2026 $8.44FY2027 $1.06FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -49.9%FY2026 -31.2%FY2027 -10.2%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +29.6% – -18.9%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.05BFY2026 $259.67MFY2026 $2.04BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +9.2%FY2026 +21.8%FY2026 +10.0%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -7.5% -8.1% -0.6%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersESSALXAMH
Held by institutions 100.0% 38.9% 90.7%
Institutions holding 630 153 480
Change in shares held, QoQ +4.7% +2.7% +8.2%
Institutions buying 348 71 253
Institutions selling 183 50 160
Buyers to sellers 1.90 1.42 1.58

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.

ESSALXAMH
ESS 1.00 0.33 0.70
ALX 0.33 1.00 0.28
AMH 0.70 0.28 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, ESS, ALX and AMH?

Essex Property Trust (ESS) is the largest by market capitalisation: Essex Property Trust (ESS) $16.92B, Alexanders (ALX) $1.28B, American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) $11.26B.

Which stock is cheaper, ESS, ALX and AMH?

Alexanders (ALX) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Essex Property Trust (ESS) 40.9x, Alexanders (ALX) 7.5x, American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) 24.2x). On next year's consensus earnings, Alexanders (ALX) is cheapest (Essex Property Trust (ESS) 52.8x, Alexanders (ALX) 29.5x, American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) 30.0x). 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: Essex Property Trust (ESS) +4.7%, Alexanders (ALX) -1.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Alexanders (ALX) has the highest net margin (Essex Property Trust (ESS) 21.5%, Alexanders (ALX) 79.1%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Alexanders (ALX) returned the most: Essex Property Trust (ESS) +4.8%, Alexanders (ALX) +5.2%, American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) -4.7%. Over five years, Alexanders (ALX) compounded fastest (Essex Property Trust (ESS) -4.5%/yr, Alexanders (ALX) -2.5%/yr, American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) -4.8%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Alexanders (ALX) has the highest dividend yield: Essex Property Trust (ESS) 0.04%, Alexanders (ALX) 0.07%, American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) 0.04%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Essex Property Trust (ESS) has been the steadiest (Essex Property Trust (ESS) 20.1%, Alexanders (ALX) 27.9%, American Homes 4 Rent (AMH) 20.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

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

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.