SLG vs ESRT vs HIW Stock Comparison

Sl Green Realty, Empire State Realty Trust and Highwoods Properties Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
SLG Sl Green Realty Corp
$49.47 -3.0% 1M -6.2% 1Y
Market cap
$3.48B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$1.07B
Div. yield
–
Office REITs Real Estate
4 wins

Head to Head

9 decided of 12

Highwoods Properties leads on 5 of the 12 questions below (Highwoods Properties 5, Sl Green Realty 4). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionSLGESRTHIWLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $3.48B $850.92M $3.21B SLG
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -24.3x 276.9x 17.3x HIW
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — — 26.2x –
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +9.7% +2.0% +5.4% SLG
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months — 0.4% 21.7% HIW
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital — -1.1% — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA — 5.0x — –
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.00% 0.03% 0.07% HIW
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -6.2% -36.8% +0.9% HIW
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -7.4%/yr -12.8%/yr -8.1%/yr SLG
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 38.2% 36.6% 29.3% HIW
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 49/100 35/100 49/100 SLG

Percentile Scorecard

SLGESRTHIW

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

AxisSLGESRTHIW
Valuation 49 #75 of 145 78 #33 of 145 55 #66 of 145
Growth 40 #85 of 141 1 #139 of 141 36 #90 of 141
Profitability – 26 #99 of 134 63 #50 of 134
Financial Health – 57 #60 of 138 31 #96 of 138
Shareholder Returns 59 #54 of 131 13 #114 of 131 58 #56 of 131
Overall 49 35 49
  • SLG ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • ESRT ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • HIW ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodSLGESRTHIWSPY
1 month -3.0%+22.4%-0.9% -0.2%
3 months -6.8%-11.1%-11.3% +3.9%
6 months +12.8%-12.2%+19.7% +8.2%
Year to date +7.8%-22.9%+15.5% +12.9%
1 year -6.2%-36.8%+0.9% +12.3%
3 years +69.1%-37.3%+67.6% +87.4%
3 years, per year +19.2%-14.4%+18.8% +23.3%
5 years -31.7%-49.6%-34.3% +67.9%
5 years, per year -7.4%-12.8%-8.1% +10.9%
10 years -51.8%-74.0%-39.0% +261.1%
10 years, per year -7.0%-12.6%-4.8% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureSLGESRTHIWSPY
Volatility, 1Y 38.2%36.6%29.3% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 38.7%41.8%32.0% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y 0.930.320.55 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.16-1.010.03 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -76.2%-65.6%-62.9% -25.4%
From 52-week high -17.3%-36.8%-13.3% -1.2%
52-week high $59.83$7.96$34.39 $779.14
52-week low $35.33$3.93$20.58 $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.

MultipleSLGESRTHIW
P/E now vs peer median -24.4xmedian 26.3x 280.0xmedian 26.3x 17.8xmedian 26.3x
P/S now vs peer median 3.3xmedian 4.0x 1.1xmedian 4.0x 3.9xmedian 4.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median —median 14.4x 10.0xmedian 14.4x —median 14.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median -3.5xmedian 23.3x -2.0xmedian 23.3x -9.0xmedian 23.3x
P/B now vs peer median 0.9xmedian 1.3x 0.5xmedian 1.3x 1.3xmedian 1.3x
PEG now vs peer median -0.71median 1.91 -4.68median 1.91 1.89median 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 monthsSLGESRTHIW
Revenue $1.07B $784.18M $851.95M
Operating income – -$34.52M –
Net income – $9.26M $193.92M
Free cash flow – -$437.31M -$366.24M
EPS (diluted) $-2.03 $0.01 $1.65
Cash & equivalents $186.44M $85.61M $279.21M
Total debt – $4.54B $3.51B
Shares (diluted) 70.67M 268.95M 112.32M
Enterprise value $3.48B $409.72M $2.72B

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
MetricSLGESRTHIW
P/E -24.4x 280.0x 17.8x
P/FCF -3.5x -2.0x -9.0x
P/Operating cash flow – 3.8x 8.7x
P/S 3.3x 1.1x 3.9x
P/B 0.9x 0.5x 1.3x
P/Tangible book 1.2x 0.5x 1.4x
EV/EBITDA – 10.0x –
EV/EBIT – -50.2x –
EV/Revenue 3.3x 2.2x 7.7x
EV/FCF – -4.0x -17.8x
EV/Operating cash flow – 7.6x 17.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) -0.71 -4.68 1.89

Growth

14 metrics
MetricSLGESRTHIW
Revenue growth (1Y) 9.7% 2.0% 5.4%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) 1.5% 2.9% 0.5%
Gross profit growth (1Y) – – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) – – –
Operating income growth (1Y) – -123.1% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) – -31.0% –
Net income growth (1Y) – -86.5% 49.5%
Net income CAGR (3Y) – -51.3% 11.2%
EPS growth (1Y) -7,085% -92.4% 46.0%
EPS CAGR (3Y) 34.3% -59.8% 9.4%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) – -13.3% 4.5%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) – -0.8% -0.6%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) – -169.4% -176.2%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) – -149.9% -66.8%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricSLGESRTHIW
Gross margin – – –
EBITDA margin – 22.1% –
Operating margin – -4.4% –
Pretax margin – 1.3% –
Net margin – 0.4% 21.7%
FCF margin – -55.8% -43.0%
Operating cash flow margin – 29.0% 44.5%
Return on equity -2.6% 0.5% 7.5%
Return on assets – 0.2% 3.0%
Return on invested capital – -1.1% –
Return on capital employed – – –
Asset turnover – 0.2x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) – 24.6x 2.0x
Stock comp / revenue – 3.9% 1.1%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricSLGESRTHIW
Debt / assets – 22.4% 54.5%
Debt / equity – 0.5x 1.4x
Net debt / EBITDA – 5.0x –
Debt / FCF – -2.2x -9.6x
Liabilities / assets – 58.1% 60.2%
Equity / assets – 41.9% 39.8%
Interest coverage – -0.3x –
Current ratio – – –
Quick ratio – – –
Cash ratio – – –
Altman Z-score – – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricSLGESRTHIW
Dividend yield 4.8% 3.1% 6.7%
Net buyback yield – – -0.4%
Shareholder yield 4.8% 3.1% 6.3%
Payout ratio (earnings) – 259.1% 113.6%
Payout ratio (FCF) – -5.5% -60.1%
Dividend growth (1Y) – 2.2% 2.3%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 1.9% 1.5%

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.

ConsensusSLGESRTHIW
Forward P/E – – 26.2xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-0.75FY2026 $-0.35FY2027 $1.14FY2026
EPS growth, next FY – -240.0%FY2027 -21.4%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – – -36.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $640.65MFY2026 $758.24MFY2026 $908.60MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY +6.5%FY2026 -1.3%FY2026 +12.7%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after +6.4% +4.5% -8.1%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersSLGESRTHIW
Held by institutions 99.3% 83.6% 100.0%
Institutions holding 355 228 371
Change in shares held, QoQ +0.0% +0.4% +10.9%
Institutions buying 185 141 214
Institutions selling 118 51 102
Buyers to sellers 1.57 2.76 2.10

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.

SLGESRTHIW
SLG 1.00 0.44 0.73
ESRT 0.44 1.00 0.48
HIW 0.73 0.48 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, SLG, ESRT and HIW?

Sl Green Realty (SLG) is the largest by market capitalisation: Sl Green Realty (SLG) $3.48B, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) $850.92M, Highwoods Properties (HIW) $3.21B.

Which stock is cheaper, SLG, ESRT and HIW?

Highwoods Properties (HIW) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Sl Green Realty (SLG) -24.3x, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) 276.9x, Highwoods Properties (HIW) 17.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Sl Green Realty (SLG) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Sl Green Realty (SLG) +9.7%, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) +2.0%, Highwoods Properties (HIW) +5.4%.

Which company is more profitable?

Highwoods Properties (HIW) has the highest net margin (Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) 0.4%, Highwoods Properties (HIW) 21.7%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Highwoods Properties (HIW) returned the most: Sl Green Realty (SLG) -6.2%, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) -36.8%, Highwoods Properties (HIW) +0.9%. Over five years, Sl Green Realty (SLG) compounded fastest (Sl Green Realty (SLG) -7.4%/yr, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) -12.8%/yr, Highwoods Properties (HIW) -8.1%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Highwoods Properties (HIW) has the highest dividend yield: Sl Green Realty (SLG) 0.00%, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) 0.03%, Highwoods Properties (HIW) 0.07%. Sl Green Realty (SLG) pays no regular dividend.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Highwoods Properties (HIW) has been the steadiest (Sl Green Realty (SLG) 38.2%, Empire State Realty Trust (ESRT) 36.6%, Highwoods Properties (HIW) 29.3%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, SLG, ESRT and HIW?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Highwoods Properties (HIW) 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.