REITs and investment offices · 19/36 against 16/36 checks · to 2026-09-08
AMT vs PLD.
American TowerOwns cell towers worldwide and leases space on them to wireless carriers.
PrologisOwns logistics warehouses worldwide and leases them to shippers and retailers.→American Tower (AMT) and Prologis (PLD) are within reach of each other at $81.9B and $129.1B, and on the filings American Tower passes more, 19 checks of 36 against 16.
Which passes more checks?
widest gap first→The two are furthest apart on Growth, where American Tower passes 3 more of the six.
| AMT | PLD | |
|---|---|---|
| Growth | 3/6 | 0/6 |
| Health | 2/6 | 5/6 |
| Trend analysis | 3/6 | 1/6 |
| Value | 1/6 | 0/6 |
| Quality | 5/6 | 6/6 |
| Shareholder returns | 5/6 | 4/6 |
| All checks | 19/36 | 16/36 |
→American Tower turns over $10.8B to Prologis's $8.9B, 1.2 times as much. American Tower keeps 27.8% of revenue as profit against 42.5% at Prologis.
Which is growing faster, AMT or PLD?
→American Tower and Prologis grew revenue at much the same rate last year, +6.3% against +6.7%. Over three years the order is reversed: Prologis compounds at +13.7% against +3.3%.
| AMT | PLD | |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue (TTM) | $10.8B | $8.9B |
| Revenue growth, 1 year | +6.3% | +6.7% |
| Revenue CAGR, 3 years | +3.3% | +13.7% |
| Net income (TTM) | $3.0B | $3.8B |
| Free cash flow (TTM) | $3.8B | $5.0B |
Which balance sheet is stronger?
→Prologis carries much the lighter balance sheet, 0.65x of debt to equity against 10.59x - which matters most in the year a downturn arrives, not this one.
| AMT | PLD | |
|---|---|---|
| Debt / equity | 10.59x | 0.65x |
| Interest coverage | 3.5x | 4.6x |
| Cash and short-term investments | $1.6B | $861M |
Which is cheaper?
→American Tower is the cheaper of the two on earnings, 27.4x against 34.9x. Against their own histories, American Tower is below its 39.5x median and Prologis is above its 28.1x.
| AMT | PLD | |
|---|---|---|
| Share price | $175.73 | $138.48 |
| Market cap | $81.9B | $129.1B |
| P/E | 27.4x | 34.9x |
| P/E, own median own 11-year median / own 10-year median | 39.5x | 28.1x |
| P/S | 7.6x | 14.4x |
| Free cash flow yield | 4.6% | 3.9% |
Which keeps more of each sale?
→Prologis keeps more of each sale: operating margin of 52.4% against 44.7%, a gap of 8 points that flows into everything below it.
| AMT | PLD | |
|---|---|---|
| Gross margin | 99.6% | - |
| Operating margin | 44.7% | 52.4% |
| Return on equity | 85.4% | 7.1% |
Which hands more back to owners?
→Both pay: American Tower yields the more at 3.9% against 2.9%. A yield rises when a price falls, so read it beside the payout checks in each report.
| AMT | PLD | |
|---|---|---|
| Dividend yield | 3.9% | 2.9% |
| Payout ratio | 105.7% | 99.1% |
| Years of unbroken dividend | - | - |
Where they differ most
the checks behind the gapGrowth: American Tower 3 ahead
- Profits grew last year 62.1% vs 0.0%
- Growth is speeding up, not slowing 1y 6.3% vs 3y 3.3%
- Grew per share, not just in total (FFO per share) 15.1% vs 0.0%
- Outgrew its sector last year 6.7% vs 7.7% (sector 70th pct, n=179)
- Sustained growth beats its sector (3 years) 13.7% vs 16.1% (sector 70th pct, n=170)
- Profits grew last year -0.1% vs 0.0%
Health: Prologis 3 ahead
- Leverage is under control 40.9% vs 60.0%
- Less levered than its peers 0.41 vs 0.48 (sector 30th pct, n=221)
- FFO covers the interest 5.70 vs 2.00
- Leverage is under control 83.9% vs 60.0%
- Less levered than its peers 0.84 vs 0.48 (sector 30th pct, n=221)
- Debt trending the right way debt/equity 10.59 now vs 9.46 five years ago