IRT vs ELS vs ESS Stock Comparison

Independence Realty Trust, Equity Lifestyle Properties and Essex Property Trust Prices as of Nov 3, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Equity Lifestyle Properties leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Equity Lifestyle Properties 5, Essex Property Trust 4, Independence Realty Trust 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionIRTELSESSLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $3.64B $12.11B $17.50B ESS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only 58.9x 31.0x 50.4x ELS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS 105.9x 28.6x 50.8x ELS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +3.1% +3.2% +4.5% ESS
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months 9.2% 24.8% 17.8% ELS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — 7.8% — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 5.2x 5.5x ELS
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.04% 0.03% 0.04% IRT
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -7.4% -0.2% +4.1% ESS
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -9.4%/yr -6.6%/yr -4.4%/yr ESS
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 21.2% 18.8% 20.3% ELS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 60/100 50/100 46/100 IRT

Percentile Scorecard

IRTELSESS

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

AxisIRTELSESS
Valuation 48 #76 of 146 13 #127 of 146 18 #120 of 146
Growth 70 #44 of 145 47 #77 of 145 32 #99 of 145
Profitability 59 #58 of 141 92 #12 of 141 87 #19 of 141
Financial Health 68 #47 of 146 38 #91 of 146 51 #72 of 146
Shareholder Returns 56 #61 of 136 59 #57 of 136 42 #80 of 136
Overall 60 50 46
  • IRT ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • ELS 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

PeriodIRTELSESSSPY
1 month +2.1%+3.5%-1.4% -2.0%
3 months -13.1%-7.1%-7.8% -2.2%
6 months -10.2%-3.5%-0.7% +4.2%
Year to date -15.2%-0.5%+1.2% +10.6%
1 year -7.4%-0.2%+4.1% +10.4%
3 years +8.7%-11.2%+21.9% +73.6%
3 years, per year +2.8%-3.9%+6.8% +20.2%
5 years -38.8%-28.7%-20.2% +61.6%
5 years, per year -9.4%-6.6%-4.4% +10.1%
10 years +86.6%+66.1%+21.3% +261.3%
10 years, per year +6.4%+5.2%+1.9% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureIRTELSESSSPY
Volatility, 1Y 21.2%18.8%20.3% 12.8%
Downside volatility, 1Y 22.8%18.2%22.0% 12.8%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.18-0.220.11 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.35-0.010.20 0.81
Max drawdown, 5Y -57.1%-34.2%-45.4% -25.4%
From 52-week high -16.6%-11.8%-11.2% -3.2%
52-week high $17.77$68.37$298.33 $779.14
52-week low $14.46$57.64$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.

MultipleIRTELSESS
P/E now vs peer median 56.5xmedian 26.1x 29.9xmedian 26.1x 49.0xmedian 26.1x
P/S now vs peer median 5.2xmedian 4.1x 7.4xmedian 4.1x 8.8xmedian 4.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 14.4x 23.5xmedian 14.4x 19.7xmedian 14.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 35.4xmedian 21.6x 31.6xmedian 21.6x 25.3xmedian 21.6x
P/B now vs peer median 1.0xmedian 1.3x 6.5xmedian 1.3x 3.1xmedian 1.3x
PEG now vs peer median 50.12median 1.95 3.35median 1.95 -3.78median 1.95

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 monthsIRTELSESS
Revenue $671.80M $1.58B $1.95B
Gross profit – $1.44B –
Operating income – $412.54M $573.46M
Net income $63.02M $404.07M $368.62M
Free cash flow $98.76M $370.75M $673.94M
EPS (diluted) $0.26 $1.95 $5.40
Cash & equivalents $43.31M $24.33M $72.06M
Total debt $2.40B $3.31B $6.61B
Shares (diluted) 236.11M 200.25M 64.31M
Enterprise value $3.46B $11.98B $17.25B

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
MetricIRTELSESS
P/E 56.5x 29.9x 49.0x
P/FCF 35.4x 31.6x 25.3x
P/Operating cash flow 12.6x 19.7x 15.4x
P/S 5.2x 7.4x 8.8x
P/B 1.0x 6.5x 3.1x
P/Tangible book 1.0x 6.5x 3.1x
EV/EBITDA – 23.5x 19.7x
EV/EBIT – 36.3x 41.1x
EV/Revenue 8.7x 9.5x 12.1x
EV/FCF 59.3x 40.4x 35.0x
EV/Operating cash flow 21.1x 25.3x 21.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 50.12 3.35 -3.78

Growth

14 metrics
MetricIRTELSESS
Revenue growth (1Y) 3.1% 3.2% 4.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 0.8% 2.4% 5.4%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – 3.4% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – 3.9% –
Operating income growth (1Y) – 4.9% -45.5%
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – 16.4% -5.6%
Net income growth (1Y) 179.0% 1.3% -59.9%
Net income CAGR (3Y) 2.6% 9.2% -12.7%
EPS growth (1Y) 174.8% 2.3% -58.9%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 1.1% 8.9% -13.0%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) -2.7% 2.8% 4.7%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 2.0% 6.6% 5.5%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) 153.8% 11.0% 568.8%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 75.6% 22.6% 0.1%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricIRTELSESS
Gross margin – 91.0% –
EBITDA margin – 40.3% 61.6%
Operating margin – 26.1% 29.5%
Pretax margin – 18.3% 16.0%
Net margin 9.2% 24.8% 17.8%
FCF margin 14.7% 23.5% 34.6%
Operating cash flow margin 41.3% 37.6% 57.0%
Return on equity 1.8% 22.3% 6.7%
Return on assets 1.0% 7.0% 2.9%
Return on invested capital – 7.8% –
Return on capital employed – – –
Asset turnover 0.1x 0.3x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) 4.4x 1.5x 3.0x
Stock comp / revenue 1.2% 0.4% 0.6%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricIRTELSESS
Debt / assets 39.5% 57.4% 51.5%
Debt / equity 0.7x 1.8x 1.2x
Net debt / EBITDA – 5.2x 5.5x
Debt / FCF 24.3x 8.9x 9.8x
Liabilities / assets 42.8% 68.7% 57.4%
Equity / assets 57.2% 31.3% 42.6%
Interest coverage – 3.0x 2.2x
Current ratio – – –
Quick ratio – – –
Cash ratio – – –
Altman Z-score – – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricIRTELSESS
Dividend yield 4.7% 3.5% 3.9%
Net buyback yield 1.4% 0.0% 0.2%
Shareholder yield 6.1% 3.5% 4.1%
Payout ratio (earnings) 259.5% 101.5% 180.2%
Payout ratio (FCF) 165.6% 110.6% 98.6%
Dividend growth (1Y) 9.2% 8.7% 2.8%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) 7.9% 8.7% 4.6%

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.

ConsensusIRTELSESS
Forward P/E 105.9xFY2026 28.6xFY2026 50.8xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $0.14FY2026 $2.11FY2026 $5.21FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -41.7%FY2026 +5.0%FY2026 -49.9%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after +50.0% +9.0% +29.6%
Revenue, next fiscal year $637.39MFY2026 $1.52BFY2026 $2.05BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -2.9%FY2026 -0.6%FY2026 +9.2%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +20.7% +14.4% -7.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersIRTELSESS
Held by institutions 98.8% 100.0% 100.0%
Institutions holding 397 477 632
Change in shares held, QoQ +2.0% +2.6% +4.7%
Institutions buying 189 220 348
Institutions selling 142 190 185
Buyers to sellers 1.33 1.16 1.88

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.

IRTELSESS
IRT 1.00 0.55 0.71
ELS 0.55 1.00 0.53
ESS 0.71 0.53 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, IRT, ELS and ESS?

Essex Property Trust (ESS) is the largest by market capitalisation: Independence Realty Trust (IRT) $3.64B, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) $12.11B, Essex Property Trust (ESS) $17.50B.

Which stock is cheaper, IRT, ELS and ESS?

Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 58.9x, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 31.0x, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 50.4x). On next year's consensus earnings, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) is cheapest (Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 105.9x, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 28.6x, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 50.8x). 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: Independence Realty Trust (IRT) +3.1%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) +3.2%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) +4.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) has the highest net margin (Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 9.2%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 24.8%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 17.8%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Essex Property Trust (ESS) returned the most: Independence Realty Trust (IRT) -7.4%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) -0.2%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) +4.1%. Over five years, Essex Property Trust (ESS) compounded fastest (Independence Realty Trust (IRT) -9.4%/yr, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) -6.6%/yr, Essex Property Trust (ESS) -4.4%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Independence Realty Trust (IRT) has the highest dividend yield: Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 0.04%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 0.03%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 0.04%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) has been the steadiest (Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 21.2%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 18.8%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 20.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, IRT, ELS 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, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) leads on 5. 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.