DLR vs. SUI: Digital Realty Trust vs. Sun Communities Stock Comparison

Company Profile

Digital Realty Trust (DLR) and Sun Communities (SUI) both fall under the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group, but DLR is classified in Specialized REITs while SUI is classified in Residential REITs.

Both Digital Realty Trust (DLR) and Sun Communities (SUI) 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

Both Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 3.34% and Sun Communities (SUI) at 4.89% land near their industries’ usual ROE ranges, so capital efficiency looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

Neither Digital Realty Trust (DLR) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor Sun Communities (SUI) 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 Sun Communities (SUI) 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 Sun Communities (SUI) at 0.77% 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 Sun Communities (SUI) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) under our convention.

Growth Metrics

Financial Strength

Sun Communities (SUI) at 3.07 carries current ratio above its industry’s typical mid-range, while Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 0.58 runs in the tighter-liquidity quartile — different working-capital profiles, both worth examining.

Both Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 0.69 and Sun Communities (SUI) at 0.72 keep leverage in the lower quartile of their industries, with less balance-sheet debt relative to equity than most peers.

Financial Strength Metrics

Dividends

Sun Communities (SUI) at 3.60% pays a yield in its industry’s typical range, while Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 2.79% 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 Sun Communities (SUI) 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 Sun Communities (SUI) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs): depreciation suppresses reported earnings in their businesses, and price-to-FFO is the conventional yardstick instead.

Sun Communities (SUI) at 6.39 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 9.47 sits in the pricier quartile — DLR costs more per dollar of sales.

Digital Realty Trust (DLR) at 2.39 is valued about in line with its industry on P/B ratio, while Sun Communities (SUI) at 2.76 carries an above-peer premium to book — SUI is pricier on assets.

Valuation Metrics