AMERICAN TOWER CORP /MA/ vs Public Storage, two REIT stocks. A side-by-side on valuation, growth, margins, returns, and what each price is betting.
American Tower leases vertical real estate on cell towers; Public Storage rents self-storage units, two REITs with unusually high, real cash margins beneath the GAAP depreciation. Public Storage's reported 39.2% net margin and 20.4% return on equity are less distorted than most REITs' because storage carries light maintenance capex, while AMT's tower economics are contracted and escalating. Both pay near-4% dividends, 3.88% and 3.7%. PSA carries 1.04 turns of debt, AMT 0.6. Towers offer contracted carrier leases with built-in escalators, storage offers pricing power and low capex, and both are quality infrastructure-adjacent landlords whose dividends and cash generation, not their P/Es, tell the story.
Comparison updated 2026-07-11.
| Metric | AMT | PSA |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $175.33 | $324.33 |
| Market cap | $81.8B | $57.1B |
| Sector | REIT | REIT |
| Stage | Mature | Mature |
| P/E | 28.3 | 33.5 |
| P/B | 8.06 | 6.12 |
| P/S | 7.57 | 11.74 |
| EV/EBITDA | 17.9 | 40.8 |
| Revenue growth | +6.3% | +2.9% |
| Operating margin | 45.3% | 39.0% |
| Net margin | 27.8% | 39.2% |
| Return on equity | 29.6% | 20.4% |
| Return on assets | 4.8% | 9.6% |
| Return on invested capital | 25.6% | 2.5% |
| FCF yield | 4.6% | 5.6% |
| Dividend yield | 3.9% | 3.7% |
| Debt / equity | 0.60 | 1.04 |
| Current ratio | 0.30 | — |
| Altman Z (solvency) | 0.92 | 3.49 |
| Piotroski F (quality) | 7 / 9 | 8 / 9 |
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The stronger value is highlighted per metric where one is strictly better on that single number; it is not an overall verdict on either company. For informational and research purposes only. Not investment advice. Not a recommendation to buy, sell, or hold any security. boothcheck is not a registered investment adviser. Past performance does not guarantee future results.