One-glance verdict
Within fair range
$64.64 our estimate vs market $63.66
Wall Street consensus: $72.99 (12.9% higher than our fair-value estimate)
2% below our estimate
Fundamentals snapshot
Equity Residential
EQR · NYQ · Real Estate · REIT - Residential
Current price
$63.66
52-week range
$57.57 - $71.50
Market cap
$24.61B
Balance sheet
Stretched
2.83x Stretched
Net debt $8.53B. Interest coverage shows how many times profit covers the interest bill.
What stands out
3 Rewards
3 Risks
3 rewards · 3 risks
- Reward Revenue grew 3.8% last year.
- Reward Returns 8.0% on equity, ahead of 50% of its peers.
- Risk Forward P/E (41.4x) is higher than trailing (28.7x) - earnings are expected to drop.
- Risk Net debt grew 9.7% over 3 years.
What this company does
Equity Residential
Equity Residential is a company that owns and manages apartment buildings, primarily in big cities like those on the coasts, and they make their money by collecting rent from renters. This matters because stable rental income (money that comes in regularly and predictably) is important for the company's ability to pay its bills and make a profit for its investors.
How the company got here
Equity Residential's story began in the early 1960s with Sam Zell and Bob Lurie, who started by managing student apartment buildings while attending the University of Michigan. Over the decades, their real estate ventures grew, eventually leading to the formation of Equity Residential Properties Trust in 1993. This move allowed them to become a publicly traded Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT), a company that owns, operates, and develops income-generating real estate. The company expanded significantly through acquisitions, notably the Archstone transaction in 2013, which was a major turning point in its modern history. Equity Residential is now a prominent player in the U.S. apartment market, recognized for its large portfolio and strategic focus on key metropolitan areas.
What it actually does
Equity Residential owns and manages a large portfolio of apartment buildings, primarily in major U.S. cities. Think of them as a landlord for thousands of people, providing places to live in exchange for monthly rent. They focus on creating communities where people want to live, and their business involves acquiring, developing, and managing these high-quality apartment properties. In addition to rent, they also generate income from other services like parking and pet fees.
Apartment Rentals
This is the core of Equity Residential's business. They own and operate apartment communities, and their main source of income comes from collecting monthly rent from residents. They focus on market-rate apartments in urban and close-in suburban neighborhoods, aiming to attract renters who value location, access to jobs, and quality of life. The company manages over 85,000 apartment units across the U.S., with a strong presence in major coastal markets and growing exposure in high-growth areas like Atlanta, Austin, Dallas, and Denver.
What management is betting on now
Equity Residential is focused on strategically placing its capital in locations where strong job growth and high homeownership costs create durable demand for rentals. They are also committed to operating their portfolio efficiently, which includes investing in energy-efficient technologies and practices to reduce costs and environmental impact. This dual focus on strategic market positioning and operational efficiency aims to drive long-term value for their shareholders and create sustainable communities for residents.
Price history
How the share price has moved
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Is it cheap or expensive?
Fair value $64.64 vs current price $63.66
Wall Street consensus is the average analyst price target: $72.99 (12.9% higher than our fair-value estimate).
Our most-likely fair value is $64.64 a share — about 1.5% away from today's price of $63.66, so the stock currently looks fairly priced.
Is it drowning in debt?
Stretched
Net debt $8.5B. Interest coverage 2.8x.
Net debt
$8.53B
Interest coverage
2.83x
Equity Residential's profit covers its interest bill about 2.8 times over. which is stronger than most peers shown here.
Stretched
Worse cushion
Baseline
Better cushion
EQR
BASELINE
Equity Residential
Total debt $8.57B Interest coverage 2.83x This is the baseline the peer rows are being compared against.
Total debt $9.19B Interest coverage 3.55x +25% vs EQR Carries about 1.3x more debt cushion than EQR.
Total debt $6.64B Interest coverage 2.33x -18% vs EQR Carries about 1.2x less debt cushion than EQR.
Total debt $5.84B Interest coverage 3.34x +18% vs EQR Carries about 1.2x more debt cushion than EQR.
Total debt $4.87B Interest coverage 2.09x -26% vs EQR Carries about 1.4x less debt cushion than EQR.
What you should know
The case for and against EQR
3 Rewards
3 Risks
Rewards
-
Revenue grew 3.8% last year.
-
Returns 8.0% on equity, ahead of 50% of its peers.
-
Free cash flow was positive in 4/10 years.
Risks
-
Forward P/E (41.4x) is higher than trailing (28.7x) - earnings are expected to drop.
-
Net debt grew 9.7% over 3 years.
-
Operating margin compressed from 29.7% to 27.9% over 3 years.
The numbers
All the key metrics, grouped by purpose
Tap any ? icon to learn what it means.
Valuation
How expensive the stock looks
P/E (TTM)
28.68x
Forward P/E
41.36x
P/B
2.27x
P/S
7.87x
EV/EBITDA
17.34x
PEG ratio
16.10x
Profitability
How much profit each dollar creates
Gross margin
62.3%
Operating margin
27.9%
Net margin
28.0%
ROE
8.0%
ROA
2.7%
Health
Liquidity and balance-sheet strength
Debt / equity
0.79x
Current ratio
0.13x
Quick ratio
0.03x
Total debt
$8.57B
Total cash
$36.41M
Growth
How the business has been compounding
Revenue TTM
$3.13B
Revenue 5Y CAGR
4.2%
EPS TTM
2.22
EPS 5Y CAGR
12.8%
Cash flow
How much cash the business throws off
Operating CF TTM
$1.65B
Free CF TTM
$1.29B
FCF margin
41.2%
Dividend
Shareholder payout
Yield
0.0%
Payout ratio
121.3%
Last ex-div date
2026-06-29