Essex Property Trust, Inc. (ESS)

Real Estate · Multi-Family Residential REITs · US stock · S&P 500 component

$282.45 ▲ +8.34 (3.04%)

At close 22 Oct 2026 · USD · Volume 431,862

Compare with VMRK

Interactive chart Research report Forecast ranges Pro workspace SEC filings Historical data

Fair valueFair

$324 +14.7% to fair value

$162fair band $276–$393$486

Day's range

$273.60 – $282.87

52-week range

$238.46 – $303.35

About Essex Property Trust, Inc.

Essex Property Trust is a real estate investment trust that owns, operates and develops apartment communities on the West Coast of the United States, concentrated in Southern California, the San Francisco Bay Area and the Seattle area. Its tenants are renters in major coastal metropolitan areas, typically close to large employers. The trust leases homes to residents and manages its apartment communities as a long-term owner.

Income comes from monthly rents and related fees paid by residents. Revenue is $1.9 billion over the last twelve months, growing 5.5% a year across the last three years. The operating margin is 32.5%, and the business earns a profit of 4% on the capital invested in it. Essex carries net debt of 5.1 times EBITDA, and the dividend yield is 3.7%. On the site's X-Ray Score it receives 48 out of 100.

Price chart

Interactive chart Historical data & CSV

52-wk range $238.46 – $303.35Volume 431,862Daily, split-adjusted

Vitals

Market cap$18.2B

52-week range$238.46 – $303.35

Volume (last day)431,862

P/E (TTM)41.6

EBIT / EV yield2.5%

Free-cash-flow yield–

Dividend yield3.7%

Revenue (TTM)$1.9B

Net income (TTM)$438M

Operating margin32.5%

Return on capital4.2%

Debt incl. leases$6.4B

Cash & securities$58M

Debt = borrowings plus lease liabilities. Cash & securities = cash, equivalents and short-term marketable securities (long-term securities are not counted, so net cash can be understated for companies that hold large long-term investments). Net debt = debt minus cash & securities. Source: latest SEC 10-Q/10-K. EBIT / EV yield = operating profit divided by market cap plus net debt.

Fair value estimate

$324middle half of models $265 – $276

Fair +14.7% to fair value

Average of the 5 valuation models that pass our checks: multiples, discounted cash flow, dividend discount and earnings power value. A model more than 100% above or 60% below the price is left out as unrealistic. Model uncertainty is Medium, based on how far apart the models are. Undervalued or Overvalued means the gap to fair value is more than 17.5%.

Price $282

Undervalued < $276Fair $276 – $393Overvalued > $393

P/B multiple

$263

P/S multiple

$272

P/FFO multiple

$276

P/AFFO multiple

$265

Dividend discount, stable

$545

Dividend discount, multi-stage · not used

$1,058

A model estimate, not a price target or recommendation. Inputs: risk-free 5.13%, equity risk premium 4.30% (Damodaran). How it works.

What this means

Weak business, fairly priced

The price sits inside our fair-value band. A high score does not guarantee a good outcome; it shifts the odds a little. Use the checklist as a prompt for your own research.

Before you invest · decision checklist

I understand how this company makes money Business quality is average or better 39 The price is not above fair value $324 fair value Debt looks manageable 5.1× EBITDA Revenue has been growing 5.5% a year Profits are backed by cash There are no red flags none raised I know what share of my savings this would be

Ticked boxes are filled in from our data; the rest are yours to answer.

The five-lens scan

Every score explained in one sentence, ranked against Real Estate peers. Open a lens to see the numbers behind it.

Strong: 70 to 100Fair: 50 to 69Weak: under 50No score: not enough data

Valuation Fair

56/100

Priced about in line with its sector.

See the numbers →

EBIT / EV yield2.5%

Fair value vs price1.1×

Growth Fair

60/100

Growing at a typical pace for its sector.

See the numbers →

Revenue growth (3y)5.5%

EPS growth (3y)18.4%

Growth consistency100%

Profitability Weak

47/100

Earns lower returns on its capital than most peers.

See the numbers →

Return on invested capital4.2%

Operating margin32.5%

Gross profitability10.5%

Financial health Weak

30/100

Balance sheet is more stretched than most peers.

See the numbers →

Piotroski F-Score5 / 9

Net debt / EBITDA5.1×

Interest cover2.4×

Dividends Weak

39/100

Dividend is modest or less certain than peers.

See the numbers →

Dividend yield3.7%

Dividend growth4.9%

Quarterly results: last 6 quarters

+8.8%

Mar '25

+6.2%

Jun '25

+5.0%

Sep '25

+5.5%

Dec '25

+4.3%

Mar '26

+4.1%

Jun '26

Revenue against the same quarter a year earlier. Latest quarter revenue $489M, diluted EPS $0.97.

Compare with peers

VMRK Vivmark Residential62 CPT Camden Property Trust58 UDR UDR, Inc.50 MAA Mid America Apartment...47

Other Multi-Family Residential REITs companies by X-Ray Score.

SWOT analysis: Essex Property Trust, Inc.

Strengthsinside the company

Earnings per share have compounded at 18.4% a year over three years.

Weaknessesinside the company

Return on invested capital is only 4.2% (median 9.3% for industry peers), so the business earns little above its cost of capital.
Net debt is 5.1x EBITDA, above the 3x level that lenders usually watch.
Operating profit covers interest only 2.4x.

Opportunitiesvaluation and setting

Price momentum is strong on the weekly and monthly signals (trends can reverse).

Threatsvaluation and setting

Heavy debt makes profits sensitive to interest rates and refinancing conditions.
Trades at 41.5x earnings, 38% above the 30.1x median of industry peers, so the price already assumes better results.
Our Market Compass rates the backdrop for Real Estate as unfavourable.

Written by fixed rules from the figures on this page and the peer table below: filings, our fair value, the sector climate and the price trend. It summarises the data, it is not a forecast or advice.

Compare ESS with peers and sector

Medians of 4 Multi-Family Residential REITs peers and of 28 Real Estate stocks in our universe. Largest peers (X-Ray Score): VMRK 62, MAA 47, UDR 50, CPT 58.

Metric	ESS	Peers	Sector
X-Ray Score (out of 100)	48	54	52
Valuation	56	63	52
Growth	60	38	56
Profitability	47	56	53
Financial health	30	60	56
Dividends	39	48	48

Sector leaders: highest X-Ray Score in Real Estate

ESS ranks #18 of 29 in Real Estate and #4 of 5 in Multi-Family Residential REITs by X-Ray Score. A higher score is stronger on our five pillars; it is a ranking of facts, not a forecast.

Company	X-Ray Score
#1 VICI Vici Properties Inc.	64
#2 ARE Alexandria Real Estate Equ...	62
#3 VMRK Vivmark Residential	62
#4 INVH Invitation Homes Inc.	59
#5 HST Host Hotels & Resorts, Inc...	59
…
#18 ESS Essex Property Trust, Inc. (this stock)	48

Metric	ESS	Peers	Sector
P/E ratio	41.5x	30.1x	31.9x
PEG ratio	2.26	–	1.64
Price / book	3.4x	2.7x	2.6x
Price / sales	9.4x	6.8x	6.8x
EV / EBITDA	19.9x	17.6x	18.6x
Price / free cash flow	–	–	21.4x
Dividend yield	3.7%	4.3%	4.2%
Gap to our fair value	+14.7%	+13.1%	+6.5%

Metric	ESS	Peers	Sector
Price change, 1 month	+3.8%	+3.9%	+2.0%
Price change, 3 months	−2.7%	−7.0%	−6.8%
Price change, 6 months	+14.1%	+4.3%	+1.6%
Price change, 1 year	+11.1%	+2.5%	+2.2%

Metric	ESS	Peers	Sector
Market value	$18.2B	$13.0B	$25.3B
Revenue (last 12 months)	$1.9B	$2.0B	$4.1B
EBITDA (last 12 months)	$1.2B	$1.2B	$2.3B
Net income (last 12 months)	$438M	$440M	$869M
Free cash flow (last 12 months)	–	–	$1.3B

Metric	ESS	Peers	Sector
Revenue growth, last year	+6.4%	+2.2%	+5.1%
Revenue growth, 3 years a year	+5.5%	+3.2%	+7.1%
EPS growth, 3 years a year	+18.4%	+0.6%	−3.5%
Free cash flow growth, 3 years a year	–	–	+0.9%
Dividend growth	+4.9%	+5.3%	+9.4%

Metric	ESS	Peers	Sector
Gross margin	70.1%	–	65.9%
EBITDA margin	64.4%	55.5%	58.8%
Operating margin	32.5%	38.5%	36.0%
Net margin	22.7%	24.4%	21.2%
Return on invested capital	4.2%	9.3%	7.7%
Return on equity	8.2%	8.5%	7.2%

Metric	ESS	Peers	Sector
Net debt / EBITDA	5.1x	–	4.6x
Interest cover	2.4x	3.3x	3.5x
Current ratio	–	–	0.9x
Piotroski F-score (0 to 9)	5	7	6

Green means better than the peer median, red worse (only where a higher or lower figure is clearly better). A dash means too few companies report the figure. P/E, EV/EBITDA and price changes are not graded: a different level is not good or bad by itself.

Factor ratings for ESS

Each factor is rated by where ESS stands among the 29 Real Estate stocks in our universe.

Rating against the sector

Goodthe top third of these stocks

Averagethe middle third of these stocks

Badthe bottom third of these stocks

"Beats" is the share of those stocks it is ahead of.

Against its own history

The last columns set today's figure against the company's own median of its last five financial years:

▲ Betterbetter than its usual level

▼ Worseworse than its usual level

≈ In linewithin its usual range

For valuation factors Good means cheaper than most of the sector and Better means cheaper than usual for this company, which is not the same as a bargain.

In total: 4 Good · 7 Average · 7 Bad of 18 Growth: 1 · 2 · 0 Profitability: 1 · 3 · 1 Financial strength: 0 · 1 · 2 Valuation: 0 · 0 · 4 Cash flow: 2 · 1 · 0

Factor	ESS	Rating	Sector median	Own 5-year median	Against own history
Growth
Revenue growth, 3 years a year	+5.5%	Average beats 40%	+6.8%	–	–
Revenue growth, last year	+6.4%	Average beats 60%	+5.1%	+6.3%	≈ In line
EPS growth, 3 years a year	+18.4%	Good beats 71%	−1.9%	–	–
Profitability
Gross margin	70.1%	Good beats 81%	47.1%	70.1%	≈ In line
Operating margin	32.5%	Average beats 48%	34.3%	37.0%	▼ Worse
Net margin	22.7%	Average beats 57%	21.5%	35.8%	▼ Worse
Return on invested capital	4.2%	Bad beats 15%	7.5%	–	–
Return on equity	8.2%	Average beats 56%	7.3%	8.6%	≈ In line
Financial strength
Net debt / EBITDA	5.1x	Average beats 36%	4.6x	–	–
Interest cover	2.4x	Bad beats 27%	3.4x	2.9x	≈ In line
Piotroski F-score	5 / 9	Bad beats 28%	6 / 9	–	–
Valuation
P/E ratio	41.5x	Bad beats 27%	32.1x	31.9x	▼ Worse
Price / book	3.4x	Bad beats 29%	2.6x	3.0x	▼ Worse
Price / sales	9.4x	Bad beats 22%	7.0x	9.5x	≈ In line
EV / EBITDA	19.9x	Bad beats 27%	18.6x	–	–
Cash flow
Free cash flow margin	58.0%	Good beats 88%	44.6%	60.2%	≈ In line
Cash from operations / net income	2.55	Average beats 66%	1.91	1.76	▲ Better
Accruals (lower is better)	−5.3%	Good beats 78%	−3.7%	–	–

These ratings compare companies with each other and describe the past; they are not a forecast, a recommendation or part of the X-Ray Score. A factor is left out when its data is missing or meaningless (for example a P/E on negative earnings). A dash in the history columns means fewer than three usable years.

Fundamentals checklist

● 4 Good · ● 4 Average · ● 4 Bad

Cash quality

Earnings backed by cashGood

Risk models

Piotroski F-ScoreBad

Growth

EPS growth (3y)Good

Revenue growth (3y)Average

Growth consistencyGood

Balance sheet

Net debt / EBITDAAverage

Interest coverBad

Valuation

Fair value vs priceGood

EBIT / EV yieldBad

Profitability

Return on invested capitalBad

Operating marginAverage

Gross profitabilityAverage

Each check is graded against the company's sector, not a fixed number. Checklist score 50/100.

Financials

	FY21	FY22	FY23	FY24	FY25
Revenue	$1.4B	$1.6B	$1.7B	$1.8B	$1.9B
Operating income	$530M	$595M	$584M	$703M	$899M
Net income	$516M	$433M	$431M	$811M	$703M
Operating cash flow	$905M	$976M	$980M	$1.1B	$1.1B
Operating margin	36.8%	37.0%	35.0%	39.6%	47.6%
Free cash flow	–	–	–	–	–
Diluted EPS	$7.51	$6.27	$6.32	$11.54	$10.40

Fiscal years, from SEC filings.

Technical summary

Daily

Strongly bullish

12 bullish · 1 neutral · 3 bearish

Weekly

Strongly bullish

11 bullish · 1 neutral · 0 bearish

Monthly

Strongly bullish

7 bullish · 1 neutral · 0 bearish

Moving averages (daily)

SMA 10	271.8	Bullish
EMA 10	272.8	Bullish
SMA 20	270.9	Bullish
EMA 20	272.0	Bullish
SMA 50	274.6	Bullish
EMA 50	273.8	Bullish
SMA 100	279.5	Bullish
EMA 100	273.5	Bullish
SMA 200	264.8	Bullish
EMA 200	268.9	Bullish

Oscillators (daily)

RSI (14)	66.01	Neutral
MACD (12, 26)	0.26	Bullish
Momentum (12)	3.66	Bullish
Stochastic %K (14)	97.52	Bearish
Williams %R (14)	-2.48	Bearish
CCI (20)	357.8	Bearish

Pivot points (classic, last session)

267.1

270.4

276.4

Pivot

279.6

285.7

288.9

295.0

Signals describe what the chart is doing, not what to do. Moving averages: price above the average is bullish. Oscillators use the usual thresholds (RSI 30/70, Stochastic 20/80, CCI ±100, Williams %R −80/−20; MACD and momentum above zero are bullish). Weekly and monthly views use closing prices only.

Dividends

Paid, last 12 months

10.34 USD

Yield on today's price

3.66%

Frequency

Quarterly

Next ex-dividend date

Not announced

Ex-dividend date	Amount per share
30 Sep 2026	2.5900
30 Jun 2026	2.5900
31 Mar 2026	2.5900
2 Jan 2026	2.5700
30 Sep 2025	2.5700
30 Jun 2025	2.5700
31 Mar 2025	2.5700
2 Jan 2025	2.4500
30 Sep 2024	2.4500
28 Jun 2024	2.4500
27 Mar 2024	2.4500
29 Dec 2023	2.3100

Ex-dividend dates and amounts from EODHD. Shown as declared, before tax.

ETFs that hold ESS

ETF	Share of the fund
REZ iShares Residential and Multisector Re...	3.83%
ICF iShares Cohen & Steers REIT	2.11%
XLRE The Real Estate Select Sector SPDR	1.94%
RWR SPDR Dow Jones REIT	1.76%
NOBL ProShares S&P 500 Dividend Aristocrats	1.58%
KNG FT Cboe Vest S&P 500 Dividend Aristocr...	1.49%
USRT iShares Core U.S. REIT	1.46%
IYR iShares U.S. Real Estate	1.38%

The eight funds with the largest weight in ESS among the ETFs we cover, from each fund's latest SEC Form N-PORT (quarter-end positions, so they can be months old). All ETFs.