SUI vs ELS vs MAA Stock Comparison

Sun Communities, Equity Lifestyle Properties and Mid America Apartment Communities Prices as of Oct 27, 2026 Peers: Industry group
SUI Sun Communities Inc
$114.94 +2.4% 1M -7.7% 1Y
Market cap
$13.33B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$2.41B
Div. yield
0.04%
Residential REITs Real Estate
2 wins

Head to Head

12 decided of 12

Equity Lifestyle Properties leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Equity Lifestyle Properties 7, Mid America Apartment Communities 3, Sun Communities 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionSUIELSMAALeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $13.33B $11.22B $13.53B MAA
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -17.6x 28.7x 33.9x ELS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 28.2x 33.3x ELS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +18.4% +3.2% +0.8% SUI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -31.4% 24.8% 18.0% ELS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 3.5% 7.8% 5.3% ELS
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.4x 5.2x 4.5x SUI
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.04% 0.04% 0.05% MAA
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -7.7% -3.9% -10.7% ELS
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -10.2%/yr -6.9%/yr -10.5%/yr ELS
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 20.6% 18.6% 19.8% ELS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 49/100 50/100 51/100 MAA

Percentile Scorecard

SUIELSMAA

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

AxisSUIELSMAA
Valuation 37 #92 of 145 10 #130 of 145 45 #80 of 145
Growth 34 #94 of 141 51 #69 of 141 15 #120 of 141
Profitability 35 #87 of 134 94 #9 of 134 87 #18 of 134
Financial Health 90 #15 of 138 39 #84 of 138 60 #56 of 138
Shareholder Returns 49 #68 of 131 55 #60 of 131 46 #71 of 131
Overall 49 50 51
  • SUI ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • ELS ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • MAA ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodSUIELSMAASPY
1 month +2.4%+0.4%+0.3% -0.2%
3 months -7.5%-9.9%-12.5% +3.9%
6 months -10.4%-5.0%-8.9% +8.2%
Year to date -7.2%-1.8%-14.5% +12.9%
1 year -7.7%-3.9%-10.7% +12.3%
3 years +6.4%-7.5%+1.0% +87.4%
3 years, per year +2.1%-2.6%+0.3% +23.3%
5 years -41.4%-30.2%-42.4% +67.9%
5 years, per year -10.2%-6.9%-10.5% +10.9%
10 years +51.5%+63.3%+32.0% +261.1%
10 years, per year +4.2%+5.0%+2.8% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureSUIELSMAASPY
Volatility, 1Y 20.6%18.6%19.8% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 20.5%18.1%19.2% 12.7%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.07-0.220.05 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.37-0.21-0.54 0.97
Max drawdown, 5Y -51.1%-34.2%-50.2% -25.4%
From 52-week high -16.2%-13.0%-16.5% -1.2%
52-week high $137.18$68.37$142.19 $779.14
52-week low $110.01$57.64$114.20 $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.

MultipleSUIELSMAA
P/E now vs peer median -18.4xmedian 26.3x 29.5xmedian 26.3x 34.5xmedian 26.3x
P/S now vs peer median 5.7xmedian 4.0x 7.3xmedian 4.0x 6.2xmedian 4.0x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 18.6xmedian 14.4x 23.3xmedian 14.4x 15.3xmedian 14.4x
P/FCF now vs peer median 34.9xmedian 23.3x 31.1xmedian 23.3x 29.1xmedian 23.3x
P/B now vs peer median 2.6xmedian 1.3x 6.4xmedian 1.3x 2.5xmedian 1.3x
PEG now vs peer median 0.23median 1.91 3.30median 1.91 -2.82median 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 monthsSUIELSMAA
Revenue $2.41B $1.58B $2.22B
Gross profit $2.13B $1.44B –
Operating income $256.50M $412.54M –
Net income -$772.80M $404.07M $410.71M
Free cash flow $395.00M $370.75M $473.83M
EPS (diluted) $-6.13 $1.95 $3.44
Cash & equivalents $699.30M $24.33M $51.84M
Total debt $1.79B $3.31B $21.95B
Shares (diluted) 123.20M 200.25M 116.14M
Enterprise value $11.37B $11.10B $13.31B

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
MetricSUIELSMAA
P/E -18.4x 29.5x 34.5x
P/FCF 34.9x 31.1x 29.1x
P/Operating cash flow 16.1x 19.5x 13.6x
P/S 5.7x 7.3x 6.2x
P/B 2.6x 6.4x 2.5x
P/Tangible book 2.6x 6.4x 2.5x
EV/EBITDA 18.6x 23.3x 15.3x
EV/EBIT 58.0x 35.9x 31.4x
EV/Revenue 6.2x 9.4x 8.8x
EV/FCF 37.7x 40.0x 41.0x
EV/Operating cash flow 17.4x 25.0x 19.2x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.23 3.30 -2.82

Growth

14 metrics
MetricSUIELSMAA
Revenue growth (1Y) 18.4% 3.2% 0.8%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -8.7% 2.4% 1.6%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 15.2% 3.4% –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -5.7% 3.9% –
Operating income growth (1Y) 311.6% 4.9% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 8.0% 16.4% –
Net income growth (1Y) -172.3% 1.3% -30.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -85.6% 9.2% -12.5%
EPS growth (1Y) -175.0% 2.3% -29.0%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -81.0% 8.9% -12.2%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 5.1% 2.8% -8.0%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 6.1% 6.6% -4.2%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -6.1% 11.0% -12.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 46.9% 22.6% -4.5%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricSUIELSMAA
Gross margin 88.3% 91.0% –
EBITDA margin 33.2% 40.3% 57.1%
Operating margin 10.6% 26.1% –
Pretax margin 3.9% 18.3% 18.8%
Net margin -31.4% 24.8% 18.0%
FCF margin 16.4% 23.5% 21.4%
Operating cash flow margin 35.5% 37.6% 45.6%
Return on equity -14.2% 22.3% 7.3%
Return on assets -7.5% 7.0% 3.4%
Return on invested capital 3.5% 7.8% 5.3%
Return on capital employed – – –
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.3x 0.2x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -1.1x 1.5x 2.5x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.4% 0.9%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricSUIELSMAA
Debt / assets 18.2% 57.4% 47.5%
Debt / equity 0.3x 1.8x 1.0x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.4x 5.2x 4.5x
Debt / FCF 4.5x 8.9x 12.0x
Liabilities / assets 46.1% 68.7% 53.5%
Equity / assets 53.9% 31.3% 46.5%
Interest coverage 1.6x 3.0x 3.1x
Current ratio – – –
Quick ratio – – –
Cash ratio – – –
Altman Z-score – – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricSUIELSMAA
Dividend yield 3.8% 3.6% 5.2%
Net buyback yield 4.0% 0.0% 0.9%
Shareholder yield 7.9% 3.6% 6.0%
Payout ratio (earnings) -71.7% 101.5% 173.3%
Payout ratio (FCF) 140.3% 110.6% 150.2%
Dividend growth (1Y) -46.4% 8.7% 2.0%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 8.7% 5.1%

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.

ConsensusSUIELSMAA
Forward P/E – 28.2xFY2026 33.3xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-5.88FY2026 $2.11FY2026 $3.57FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -154.2%FY2026 +5.0%FY2026 -5.6%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – +9.0% -9.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.04BFY2026 $1.52BFY2026 $2.29BFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -11.5%FY2026 -0.6%FY2026 +3.8%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -4.9% +14.4% +1.5%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersSUIELSMAA
Held by institutions 100.0% 100.0% 97.1%
Institutions holding 530 476 771
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.1% +2.6% +8.2%
Institutions buying 258 220 395
Institutions selling 197 190 262
Buyers to sellers 1.31 1.16 1.51

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.

SUIELSMAA
SUI 1.00 0.74 0.60
ELS 0.74 1.00 0.57
MAA 0.60 0.57 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, SUI, ELS and MAA?

Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) is the largest by market capitalisation: Sun Communities (SUI) $13.33B, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) $11.22B, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) $13.53B.

Which stock is cheaper, SUI, ELS and MAA?

Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Sun Communities (SUI) -17.6x, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 28.7x, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) 33.9x). On next year's consensus earnings, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) is cheapest (Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 28.2x, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) 33.3x). A lower multiple can reflect slower expected growth, so read it next to the growth figures.

Which company is growing faster?

Sun Communities (SUI) grew revenue fastest over the trailing twelve months: Sun Communities (SUI) +18.4%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) +3.2%, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) +0.8%.

Which company is more profitable?

Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) has the highest net margin (Sun Communities (SUI) -31.4%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 24.8%, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) 18.0%). On return on invested capital, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) leads (Sun Communities (SUI) 3.5%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 7.8%, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) 5.3%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) returned the most: Sun Communities (SUI) -7.7%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) -3.9%, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) -10.7%. Over five years, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) compounded fastest (Sun Communities (SUI) -10.2%/yr, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) -6.9%/yr, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) -10.5%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) has the highest dividend yield: Sun Communities (SUI) 0.04%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 0.04%, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) 0.05%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) has been the steadiest (Sun Communities (SUI) 20.6%, Equity Lifestyle Properties (ELS) 18.6%, Mid America Apartment Communities (MAA) 19.8%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, SUI, ELS and MAA?

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 7. 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.