DLR vs. PSA: Digital Realty Trust vs. Public Storage Stock Comparison

Company Profile

Digital Realty Trust (DLR) and Public Storage (PSA) both belong to the Specialized REITs industry, though DLR is classified under Data Center REITs while PSA falls under Self-Storage REITs.

Both Digital Realty Trust (DLR) and Public Storage (PSA) are REITs — read their payout ratios and P/E alongside FFO (funds from operations) rather than at face value.

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

Trailing Returns

Calendar-Year Returns

Performance Metrics

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

Return Distribution

Risk Metrics

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

Risk-Adjusted Metrics

Profitability

Public Storage (PSA) at 21.93% sits in the top ROE quartile, while Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 2.91% is closer to the peer norm — stronger capital efficiency for PSA.

Neither Digital Realty Trust (DLR) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor Public Storage (PSA) 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.

Neither side reports a meaningful operating margin: for Digital Realty Trust (DLR) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and Public Storage (PSA) 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

Growth

Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 10.04% sits in the top revenue growth quartile, while Public Storage (PSA) at 2.74% is closer to the peer norm — faster top-line expansion for DLR.

EPS growth isn't a meaningful figure for either Digital Realty Trust (DLR) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or Public Storage (PSA) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) under our convention.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 0.89 keeps current ratio within its industry’s typical mid-range, while Public Storage (PSA) at 0.22 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — a thinner cushion against current liabilities for PSA.

Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 0.68 keeps leverage in the lower industry quartile, while Public Storage (PSA) at 1.10 runs a more typical debt-to-equity mix.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

Public Storage (PSA) at 4.14% pays a yield in its industry’s typical range, while Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 2.73% falls in the bottom quartile of its peers.

An earnings-based payout ratio fits neither Digital Realty Trust (DLR) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor Public Storage (PSA) 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

Valuation

P/E ratio is not a meaningful valuation yardstick for either Digital Realty Trust (DLR) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or Public Storage (PSA) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs): depreciation suppresses reported earnings in their businesses, and price-to-FFO is the conventional yardstick instead.

Both Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 10.07 and Public Storage (PSA) at 10.99 command a richer price per dollar of sales than most peers, sitting in the upper P/S ratio quartile of their industries.

Both look rich against book: Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 2.50 sits in the upper P/B ratio quartile, and Public Storage (PSA) at 10.48 prices even higher, above its industry range.

Valuation Metrics