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CUBE vs. IRM: CubeSmart vs. Iron Mountain Stock Comparison

How do CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM) stack up? This page sets them side by side across company profile, performance and risk, profitability, growth, financial strength, dividends, and valuation, with selected fundamentals also measured against each stock's industry-group peers.

Company Profile

CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM) both belong to the Specialized REITs industry, though CUBE is classified under Self-Storage REITs while IRM falls under Other Specialized REITs.

Both CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM) are REITs — read their payout ratios and P/E alongside FFO (funds from operations) rather than at face value.

Company profile comparison for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
Profile ItemCUBEIRM
NameCubeSmartIron Mountain Inc.
Country/RegionUnited StatesUnited States
GICS SectorReal EstateReal Estate
GICS Industry GroupEquity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs)
GICS IndustrySpecialized REITsSpecialized REITs
GICS Sub-IndustrySelf-Storage REITsOther Specialized REITs
Market Capitalization10.10 billion USD31.73 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENYSE
Listing DateOctober 22, 2004February 1, 1996
Security TypeREITREIT

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

CUBE
IRM
GSPC
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Growth of a $10,000 investment over the past five years. Adjusted for dividends and splits.

Trailing Returns

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Trailing total returns for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
Total Return (1Y)28.16%12.13%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)12.98%28.29%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)1.18%23.46%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

CUBE
IRM
GSPC
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM), with S&P 500 (GSPC) for reference: Drawdown from the running peak over the past five years. Each line shows the decline from its prior peak; 0% marks a new high.

Return Distribution

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Distribution of monthly total returns for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)22.12%35.33%
Beta (5Y)0.951.19
Max Drawdown (5Y)-36.93%-39.03%
Avg. Volume (3M)2.33M1.52M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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CUBE and IRM are plotted by 1-year volatility (risk) and 1-year return. The dashed Capital Allocation Line runs from the risk-free rate through the shared industry median.

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Risk-adjusted metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)1.080.22
Sortino Ratio (1Y)1.710.31

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: CubeSmart (CUBE) earns 12.78% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; Iron Mountain (IRM) has no ROE this period.

CUBE

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

12.78%

Max
22.74%
CUBE
12.78%
Q3
10.54%
Median
6.38%
Q1
1.69%
Min
-10.86%

IRM

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

--

Max
22.74%
Q3
10.54%
Median
6.38%
Q1
1.69%
Min
-10.86%
IRM
--
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM): IRM does not report ROE, so it has no value marker; CUBE is benchmarked against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group.

Net Margin (TTM)

Neither CubeSmart (CUBE) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor Iron Mountain (IRM) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) is well served by net margin: heavy depreciation makes net income a poor profitability proxy in their businesses, where FFO-based measures are the standard read.

Operating Margin (TTM)

Neither side reports a meaningful operating margin: for CubeSmart (CUBE) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Iron Mountain (IRM) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), funding costs are part of the core business, so net margin and ROE are the cleaner profitability reads.

Profitability Metrics

Profitability metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
ROE (TTM)12.78%--
ROA (TTM)4.42%4.72%
Net Margin (TTM)----
Operating Margin (TTM)----
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Iron Mountain (IRM) at 12.23% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while CubeSmart (CUBE) at 5.33% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for IRM.

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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

EPS growth isn't a meaningful figure for either CubeSmart (CUBE) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or Iron Mountain (IRM) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) under our convention.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
Revenue Growth (YoY)5.33%12.23%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)3.61%10.58%
EPS Growth (YoY)----
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)----

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both CubeSmart (CUBE) at 0.17 and Iron Mountain (IRM) at 0.56 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

CUBE

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

0.17

Max
4.19
Q3
2.11
Median
1.31
Q1
0.62
CUBE
0.17
Min
0.06

IRM

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

0.56

Max
4.19
Q3
2.11
Median
1.31
Q1
0.62
IRM
0.56
Min
0.06
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM): A comparison of their current ratio against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group benchmark.

Debt / Equity (MRQ)

Only one side’s leverage can be read here: CubeSmart (CUBE) carries debt-to-equity ratio of 1.42 against its industry range, while Iron Mountain (IRM) reports no figure this period.

CUBE

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

1.42

Max
2.72
Q3
1.59
CUBE
1.42
Median
0.99
Q1
0.72
Min
0.20

IRM

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

--

Max
2.72
Q3
1.59
Median
0.99
Q1
0.72
Min
0.20
IRM
--
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM): IRM does not report debt-to-equity ratio, so it has no value marker; CUBE is benchmarked against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
Current Ratio (MRQ)0.170.56
Debt / Equity (MRQ)1.42--
Net Debt / EBITDA5.067.69

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Both CubeSmart (CUBE) at 4.67% and Iron Mountain (IRM) at 3.28% pay solid, industry-typical yields, sitting squarely within their peers’ usual range.

CUBE

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

4.67%

Max
8.62%
Q3
5.95%
CUBE
4.67%
Median
4.34%
Q1
3.26%
Min
0.00%

IRM

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

3.28%

Max
8.62%
Q3
5.95%
Median
4.34%
IRM
3.28%
Q1
3.26%
Min
0.00%
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM): A comparison of their dividend yield against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group benchmark.

Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)

An earnings-based payout ratio fits neither CubeSmart (CUBE) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor Iron Mountain (IRM) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs): their distributions are mandated and conventionally measured against FFO, so the accounting-earnings ratio overstates both.

Dividend Metrics

Dividend metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
Dividend Yield (TTM)4.67%3.28%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)----

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

P/E ratio is not a meaningful valuation yardstick for either CubeSmart (CUBE) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or Iron Mountain (IRM) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs): depreciation suppresses reported earnings in their businesses, and price-to-FFO is the conventional yardstick instead.

P/S Ratio (TTM)

Iron Mountain (IRM) at 4.07 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while CubeSmart (CUBE) at 8.80 sits in the pricier quartile — CUBE costs more per dollar of sales.

CUBE

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

8.80

Max
14.47
CUBE
8.80
Q3
8.02
Median
5.98
Q1
3.27
Min
0.43

IRM

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

4.07

Max
14.47
Q3
8.02
Median
5.98
IRM
4.07
Q1
3.27
Min
0.43
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

Iron Mountain (IRM) reports a negative P/B ratio of -22.85, meaning negative book equity — the multiple itself is not meaningful for valuation. Meanwhile CubeSmart (CUBE) reports 4.06, ranking against industry peers normally.

CUBE

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

4.06

CUBE
4.06
Max
4.06
Q3
2.53
Median
1.64
Q1
1.06
Min
0.21

IRM

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

-22.85

Max
4.06
Q3
2.53
Median
1.64
Q1
1.06
Min
0.21
IRM
-22.85
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CubeSmart (CUBE) vs. Iron Mountain (IRM): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for CubeSmart (CUBE) and Iron Mountain (IRM)
MetricCUBEIRM
P/E Ratio (TTM)----
P/S Ratio (TTM)8.804.07
P/B Ratio (MRQ)4.06-22.85
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----