SUI vs ESS vs IRT Stock Comparison

Sun Communities, Essex Property Trust and Independence Realty Trust Prices as of Oct 29, 2026 Peers: Industry group
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SUI Sun Communities Inc
$112.25 +0.3% 1M -6.1% 1Y
Market cap
$14.12B
P/E
–
Revenue (TTM)
$2.41B
Div. yield
0.04%
Residential REITs Real Estate
2 wins

Head to Head

11 decided of 12

Essex Property Trust leads on 7 of the 12 questions below (Essex Property Trust 7, Sun Communities 2, Independence Realty Trust 2). Which ones matter depends on what you are buying for; a cheap multiple and slow growth often come together.

QuestionSUIESSIRTLeader
Larger companyMarket capitalisation $14.12B $17.06B $3.53B ESS
Cheaper on earningsLower P/E, profitable companies only -18.7x 41.2x 81.3x ESS
Cheaper on forward earningsLower price / next fiscal year consensus EPS — 50.9x 105.7x ESS
Faster revenue growthRevenue growth, trailing twelve months +18.4% +4.7% +3.5% SUI
More profitableNet margin, trailing twelve months -31.4% 21.5% 6.5% ESS
Better return on capitalReturn on invested capital 3.5% — — –
Less leveragedLower net debt / EBITDA 1.4x 5.3x — SUI
Higher dividend yieldTrailing dividend yield 0.04% 0.04% 0.05% IRT
Better 1-year returnPrice return, last 12 months -6.1% +7.4% -2.1% ESS
Better 5-year returnAnnualised price return, 5 years -10.6%/yr -4.8%/yr -8.9%/yr ESS
Less volatileAnnualised volatility, 1 year 20.9% 20.3% 21.6% ESS
Higher overall scoreMean of the five percentile scores vs peers 49/100 46/100 52/100 IRT

Percentile Scorecard

SUIESSIRT

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

AxisSUIESSIRT
Valuation 38 #90 of 145 15 #123 of 145 51 #72 of 145
Growth 34 #95 of 143 33 #96 of 143 54 #66 of 143
Profitability 38 #85 of 136 93 #11 of 136 52 #66 of 136
Financial Health 89 #16 of 138 47 #74 of 138 75 #36 of 138
Shareholder Returns 45 #72 of 131 40 #79 of 131 31 #91 of 131
Overall 49 46 52
  • SUI ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • ESS ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs
  • IRT ranked among 149 companies in Property REITs

Price Performance

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

Returns

PeriodSUIESSIRTSPY
1 month +0.3%-3.2%-0.3% +0.7%
3 months -9.8%-5.7%-11.3% +3.7%
6 months -12.2%+0.8%-9.3% +7.1%
Year to date -9.4%+1.4%-15.3% +12.8%
1 year -6.1%+7.4%-2.1% +11.9%
3 years +2.3%+26.3%+22.4% +85.2%
3 years, per year +0.8%+8.1%+7.0% +22.8%
5 years -42.7%-21.9%-37.4% +67.6%
5 years, per year -10.6%-4.8%-8.9% +10.9%
10 years +48.1%+26.8%+76.4% +262.0%
10 years, per year +4.0%+2.4%+5.8% +13.7%

Risk

MeasureSUIESSIRTSPY
Volatility, 1Y 20.9%20.3%21.6% 12.7%
Downside volatility, 1Y 21.0%22.2%23.0% 12.6%
Beta vs S&P 500, 1Y -0.080.110.15 1.00
Return / volatility, 1Y -0.290.36-0.10 0.94
Max drawdown, 5Y -51.1%-45.4%-57.1% -25.4%
From 52-week high -18.2%-11.1%-16.7% -1.2%
52-week high $137.18$298.33$17.77 $779.14
52-week low $110.01$239.61$14.46 $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.

MultipleSUIESSIRT
P/E now vs peer median -17.9xmedian 25.7x 41.2xmedian 25.7x 80.1xmedian 25.7x
P/S now vs peer median 5.6xmedian 4.1x 8.9xmedian 4.1x 5.2xmedian 4.1x
EV/EBITDA now vs peer median 18.2xmedian 14.3x 18.9xmedian 14.3x —median 14.3x
P/FCF now vs peer median 34.1xmedian 23.5x 29.4xmedian 23.5x -955.4xmedian 23.5x
P/B now vs peer median 2.5xmedian 1.3x 3.1xmedian 1.3x 1.0xmedian 1.3x
PEG now vs peer median 0.22median 1.86 -5.13median 1.86 -5.10median 1.86

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 monthsSUIESSIRT
Revenue $2.41B $1.93B $666.83M
Gross profit $2.13B – –
Operating income $256.50M $627.10M –
Net income -$772.80M $437.61M $44.30M
Free cash flow $395.00M $580.66M -$3.65M
EPS (diluted) $-6.13 $6.44 $0.18
Cash & equivalents $699.30M $58.33M $46.70M
Total debt $1.79B $26.96B $2.44B
Shares (diluted) 123.20M 64.28M 236.04M
Enterprise value $12.15B $16.83B $3.35B

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
MetricSUIESSIRT
P/E -17.9x 41.2x 80.1x
P/FCF 34.1x 29.4x -955.4x
P/Operating cash flow 15.7x 15.3x 12.7x
P/S 5.6x 8.9x 5.2x
P/B 2.5x 3.1x 1.0x
P/Tangible book 2.6x 3.1x 1.0x
EV/EBITDA 18.2x 18.9x –
EV/EBIT 56.7x 37.8x –
EV/Revenue 6.0x 12.3x 8.8x
EV/FCF 36.8x 40.8x -1,612x
EV/Operating cash flow 17.0x 21.2x 21.3x
PEG (3Y EPS CAGR) 0.22 -5.13 -5.10

Growth

14 metrics
MetricSUIESSIRT
Revenue growth (1Y) 18.4% 4.7% 3.5%
Revenue CAGR (3Y) -8.7% 5.2% 0.9%
Gross profit growth (1Y) 15.2% – –
Gross profit CAGR (3Y) -5.7% – –
Operating income growth (1Y) 311.6% -35.4% –
Operating income CAGR (3Y) 8.0% -2.6% –
Net income growth (1Y) -172.3% -49.8% 57.0%
Net income CAGR (3Y) -85.6% -7.9% -14.6%
EPS growth (1Y) -175.0% -48.2% 55.3%
EPS CAGR (3Y) -81.0% -8.0% -15.7%
Operating cash flow growth (1Y) 5.1% 8.3% 0.2%
Operating cash flow CAGR (3Y) 6.1% 5.4% 1.3%
Free cash flow growth (1Y) -6.1% 344.6% 98.0%
Free cash flow CAGR (3Y) 46.9% -3.3% 71.2%

Profitability

14 metrics
MetricSUIESSIRT
Gross margin 88.3% – –
EBITDA margin 33.2% 64.9% –
Operating margin 10.6% 32.5% –
Pretax margin 3.9% 18.9% –
Net margin -31.4% 21.5% 6.5%
FCF margin 16.4% 30.1% -0.5%
Operating cash flow margin 35.5% 58.0% 41.4%
Return on equity -14.2% 7.9% 1.3%
Return on assets -7.5% 3.4% 0.7%
Return on invested capital 3.5% – –
Return on capital employed – – –
Asset turnover 0.2x 0.1x 0.1x
Cash conversion (OCF / net income) -1.1x 2.6x 6.2x
Stock comp / revenue – 0.6% 1.2%

Financial Health

11 metrics
MetricSUIESSIRT
Debt / assets 18.2% 51.9% 40.1%
Debt / equity 0.3x 1.2x 0.7x
Net debt / EBITDA 1.4x 5.3x –
Debt / FCF 4.5x 11.5x -669.1x
Liabilities / assets 46.1% 57.5% 42.8%
Equity / assets 53.9% 42.5% 57.2%
Interest coverage 1.6x 2.4x –
Current ratio – – –
Quick ratio – – –
Cash ratio – – –
Altman Z-score – – –

Shareholder Returns

7 metrics
MetricSUIESSIRT
Dividend yield 3.9% 3.9% 4.7%
Net buyback yield 4.1% 0.4% -2.4%
Shareholder yield 8.1% 4.3% 2.4%
Payout ratio (earnings) -71.7% 151.6% 363.2%
Payout ratio (FCF) 140.3% 114.2% -4,405%
Dividend growth (1Y) -46.4% 4.0% 10.2%
Dividend CAGR (3Y) – 4.8% 8.7%

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.

ConsensusSUIESSIRT
Forward P/E – 50.9xFY2026 105.7xFY2026
EPS, next fiscal year $-5.88FY2026 $5.21FY2026 $0.14FY2026
EPS growth, next FY -154.2%FY2026 -49.9%FY2026 -41.7%FY2026
EPS growth, the year after – +29.6% +50.0%
Revenue, next fiscal year $2.04BFY2026 $2.05BFY2026 $637.39MFY2026
Revenue growth, next FY -11.5%FY2026 +9.2%FY2026 -2.9%FY2026
Revenue growth, the year after -4.9% -7.5% +20.7%

Institutional Ownership

13F filings, quarter ended Jun 30, 2026
HoldersSUIESSIRT
Held by institutions 100.0% 100.0% 98.8%
Institutions holding 531 631 396
Change in shares held, QoQ +6.1% +4.7% +2.0%
Institutions buying 259 348 189
Institutions selling 197 184 141
Buyers to sellers 1.31 1.89 1.34

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.

SUIESSIRT
SUI 1.00 0.54 0.55
ESS 0.54 1.00 0.71
IRT 0.55 0.71 1.00

Add a Peer

Largest companies in the same industry

Related Comparisons

Frequently Asked Questions

Which is bigger, SUI, ESS and IRT?

Essex Property Trust (ESS) is the largest by market capitalisation: Sun Communities (SUI) $14.12B, Essex Property Trust (ESS) $17.06B, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) $3.53B.

Which stock is cheaper, SUI, ESS and IRT?

Essex Property Trust (ESS) trades on the lowest price-to-earnings ratio (Sun Communities (SUI) -18.7x, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 41.2x, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 81.3x). On next year's consensus earnings, Essex Property Trust (ESS) is cheapest (Essex Property Trust (ESS) 50.9x, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 105.7x). 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%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) +4.7%, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) +3.5%.

Which company is more profitable?

Essex Property Trust (ESS) has the highest net margin (Sun Communities (SUI) -31.4%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 21.5%, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 6.5%).

Which stock has performed better?

Over the past year Essex Property Trust (ESS) returned the most: Sun Communities (SUI) -6.1%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) +7.4%, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) -2.1%. Over five years, Essex Property Trust (ESS) compounded fastest (Sun Communities (SUI) -10.6%/yr, Essex Property Trust (ESS) -4.8%/yr, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) -8.9%/yr). Returns are price only, before dividends.

Which pays a higher dividend?

Independence Realty Trust (IRT) has the highest dividend yield: Sun Communities (SUI) 0.04%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 0.04%, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 0.05%.

Which stock is riskier?

By one-year price volatility, Essex Property Trust (ESS) has been the steadiest (Sun Communities (SUI) 20.9%, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 20.3%, Independence Realty Trust (IRT) 21.6%). Volatility measures how widely the price swings, not the risk of the business.

Which is the better stock, SUI, ESS and IRT?

There is no single answer; it depends on what you are buying for. On the 12 head-to-head measures on this page, Essex Property Trust (ESS) 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.