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PSA vs. SBAC: Public Storage vs. SBA Communications Stock Comparison

How do Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC) 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

Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC) both belong to the Specialized REITs industry, though PSA is classified under Self-Storage REITs while SBAC falls under Telecom Tower REITs.

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

Company profile comparison for Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
Profile ItemPSASBAC
NamePublic StorageSBA Communications Corporation
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 REITsTelecom Tower REITs
Market Capitalization63.05 billion USD19.78 billion USD
CurrencyUSDUSD
ExchangeNYSENasdaq
Listing DateNovember 18, 1980June 16, 1999
Security TypeREITREIT

Price Performance

Cumulative Growth

PSA
SBAC
GSPC
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC), 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 Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC). Returns over one year are annualized.

Calendar-Year Returns

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Calendar-year total returns for Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC). Each bar is that year's total return, measured year-end to year-end.

Performance Metrics

Price performance metrics for Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
Total Return (1Y)28.30%-0.77%
Total Return (3Y, Annualized)16.16%-2.37%
Total Return (5Y, Annualized)5.67%-9.88%

Risk Profile

Drawdown History

PSA
SBAC
GSPC
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC), 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 Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC). Each bar is the share of months whose return fell in that 5% bucket.

Risk Metrics

Risk profile metrics for Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
Volatility (1Y, Annualized)23.47%36.62%
Beta (5Y)0.870.96
Max Drawdown (5Y)-37.93%-55.90%
Avg. Volume (3M)891.05K1.01M

Risk-Adjusted Performance

Risk-Return Positioning

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PSA and SBAC 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 Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
Sharpe Ratio (1Y)1.02-0.14
Sortino Ratio (1Y)1.58-0.24

Profitability

ROE (TTM)

Capital efficiency shows on one side only: Public Storage (PSA) earns 15.60% on shareholders’ equity, ranked against its industry; SBA Communications (SBAC) has no ROE this period.

PSA

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

15.60%

Max
22.74%
PSA
15.60%
Q3
10.54%
Median
6.38%
Q1
1.69%
Min
-10.86%

SBAC

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

--

Max
22.74%
Q3
10.54%
Median
6.38%
Q1
1.69%
Min
-10.86%
SBAC
--
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC): SBAC does not report ROE, so it has no value marker; PSA is benchmarked against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group.

Net Margin (TTM)

Neither Public Storage (PSA) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor SBA Communications (SBAC) 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 Public Storage (PSA) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) and SBA Communications (SBAC) 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 Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
ROE (TTM)15.60%--
ROA (TTM)5.70%8.17%
Net Margin (TTM)----
Operating Margin (TTM)----
Gross Margin (TTM)----

Growth

Revenue Growth

Both Public Storage (PSA) at 2.74% and SBA Communications (SBAC) at 5.06% land near their industries' usual revenue growth ranges, so top-line momentum looks broadly in line with peers on both sides.

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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC): A comparison of their Revenue Growth across different time periods.

EPS Growth

EPS growth isn't a meaningful figure for either Public Storage (PSA) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or SBA Communications (SBAC) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) under our convention.

Growth Metrics

Growth metrics for Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
Revenue Growth (YoY)2.74%5.06%
Revenue Growth (3Y CAGR)4.88%2.25%
EPS Growth (YoY)----
EPS Growth (3Y CAGR)----

Financial Strength

Current Ratio (MRQ)

Both Public Storage (PSA) at 0.37 and SBA Communications (SBAC) at 0.19 run current ratio in the tighter-liquidity quartile of industry peers, leaving thinner cushions against current liabilities than typical competitors.

PSA

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

0.37

Max
4.19
Q3
2.11
Median
1.31
Q1
0.62
PSA
0.37
Min
0.06

SBAC

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

0.19

Max
4.19
Q3
2.11
Median
1.31
Q1
0.62
SBAC
0.19
Min
0.06
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC): 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: Public Storage (PSA) carries debt-to-equity ratio of 0.80 against its industry range, while SBA Communications (SBAC) reports no figure this period.

PSA

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

0.80

Max
2.72
Q3
1.59
Median
0.99
PSA
0.80
Q1
0.72
Min
0.20

SBAC

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

--

Max
2.72
Q3
1.59
Median
0.99
Q1
0.72
Min
0.20
SBAC
--
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC): SBAC does not report debt-to-equity ratio, so it has no value marker; PSA is benchmarked against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group.

Financial Strength Metrics

Financial strength metrics for Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
Current Ratio (MRQ)0.370.19
Debt / Equity (MRQ)0.80--
Net Debt / EBITDA3.308.14

Dividends

Dividend Yield (TTM)

Public Storage (PSA) at 3.52% pays a yield in its industry’s typical range, while SBA Communications (SBAC) at 2.52% falls in the bottom quartile of its peers.

PSA

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

3.52%

Max
8.62%
Q3
5.95%
Median
4.34%
PSA
3.52%
Q1
3.26%
Min
0.00%

SBAC

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

2.52%

Max
8.62%
Q3
5.95%
Median
4.34%
Q1
3.26%
SBAC
2.52%
Min
0.00%
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC): 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 Public Storage (PSA) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) nor SBA Communications (SBAC) 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 Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
Dividend Yield (TTM)3.52%2.52%
Dividend Payout Ratio (TTM)----

Valuation

P/E Ratio (TTM)

P/E ratio is not a meaningful valuation yardstick for either Public Storage (PSA) in Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or SBA Communications (SBAC) 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)

SBA Communications (SBAC) at 6.94 is priced about in line with its industry on P/S ratio, while Public Storage (PSA) at 12.50 sits in the pricier quartile — PSA costs more per dollar of sales.

PSA

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

12.50

Max
14.47
PSA
12.50
Q3
8.02
Median
5.98
Q1
3.27
Min
0.43

SBAC

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

6.94

Max
14.47
Q3
8.02
SBAC
6.94
Median
5.98
Q1
3.27
Min
0.43
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC): A comparison of their P/S ratio against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group benchmark.

P/B Ratio (MRQ)

SBA Communications (SBAC) reports a negative P/B ratio of -4.09, meaning negative book equity — the multiple itself is not meaningful for valuation. Meanwhile Public Storage (PSA) reports 6.45, ranking against industry peers normally.

PSA

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

6.45

PSA
6.45
Max
4.06
Q3
2.53
Median
1.64
Q1
1.06
Min
0.21

SBAC

Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group

-4.09

Max
4.06
Q3
2.53
Median
1.64
Q1
1.06
Min
0.21
SBAC
-4.09
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Public Storage (PSA) vs. SBA Communications (SBAC): A comparison of their P/B ratio against the Equity Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) industry group benchmark.

Valuation Metrics

Valuation metrics for Public Storage (PSA) and SBA Communications (SBAC)
MetricPSASBAC
P/E Ratio (TTM)----
P/S Ratio (TTM)12.506.94
P/B Ratio (MRQ)6.45-4.09
Free Cash Flow Yield (TTM)----