PSA vs CUBE Stock Comparison: AI Score, Valuation, Performance and Upside
Public Storage and CubeSmart are both leading self-storage REITs, but Public Storage is the largest self-storage operator with unmatched scale, while CubeSmart has built a differentiated third-party management platform alongside its owned facility portfolio to expand its footprint in an asset-light manner.
PSA offers unmatched scale and brand recognition in self-storage, while CUBE offers a differentiated asset-light management platform alongside its owned portfolio. The decision depends on whether you prefer the largest operator's scale or a growth model diversified through third-party management.
PSA holds the edge across 3 of 5 key metrics in this comparison. PSA has delivered stronger 1-year price return (+6.38% vs -0.60%), though CUBE has the better forward P/E setup (25.21x vs 30.81x for PSA). PSA leads on both revenue growth (3.30%) and operating margin (45.70%), suggesting a stronger fundamental setup on both dimensions. Analyst consensus implies meaningfully more upside for CUBE (+11.18%) than for PSA (+7.74%).
Human Wall Street analysts' price targets, typically implying a ~12-month view — a separate signal from this site's own AI Prediction Signal further down the page, which is a 5-/30-day machine-learning forecast based on price history alone.
- Want exposure to the largest self-storage operator with unmatched scale
- Value the brand recognition and marketing advantages that come with industry leadership
- Believe continued acquisition activity can consolidate smaller self-storage operators
- Prefer a company with an extensive, diversified facility network
- Want exposure to a differentiated asset-light third-party management growth platform
- Value strong digital marketing and technology capabilities for customer acquisition
- Believe diversification across numerous metropolitan markets provides resilience
- Prefer a somewhat smaller self-storage REIT with a distinct growth strategy
| Metric | PSA | CUBE |
|---|---|---|
| AI scorei | 40.8 | 37.4 |
| AI ranki | #1103 | #1452 |
| Latest closei | $317.06 | $41.08 |
| 1M returni | +11.02% | +8.48% |
| 3M returni | -0.12% | -0.39% |
| 6M returni | +4.83% | +1.48% |
| 1Y returni | +6.38% | -0.60% |
How much would $10,000 be worth today if invested at the start of each period, with all dividends reinvested?
| Period | PSA | CUBE |
|---|---|---|
| 1Y ago | $10.96K (+9.6%) started 2025-10-29 | $10.25K (+2.5%) started 2025-10-29 |
| 5Y ago | $13.38K (+33.8%) started 2021-11-01 | $7.47K (-25.3%) started 2021-10-29 |
| 10Y ago | $31.26K (+212.6%) started 2016-10-31 | $15.76K (+57.6%) started 2016-10-31 |
Hypothetical — past performance does not guarantee future results.
| Metric | PSA | CUBE |
|---|---|---|
| Market capi | $58.55B | $8.97B |
| Trailing P/Ei | 29.94 | 26.96 |
| Forward P/Ei | 30.81 | 25.21 |
| Price/Salesi | 11.21 | N/A |
| EV/Revenuei | 14.14 | 11.00 |
| Analyst targeti | $337.76 | $44.06 |
| Target upsidei | +7.74% | +11.18% |
| Metric | PSA | CUBE |
|---|---|---|
| Revenue growthi | 3.30% | 1.50% |
| Earnings growthi | 45.10% | 8.30% |
| EPS growthi | +45.10% | +8.30% |
| FCF margini | +47.54% | +42.68% |
| Operating margini | 45.70% | 41.09% |
| Profit margini | 41.63% | 29.33% |
| ROIC proxyi | 21.93% | 12.03% |
| Return on equityi | 21.93% | 12.03% |
| Dividend yieldi | 3.83% | 5.34% |
| Payout ratioi | 126.18% | 139.47% |
| Dividend growth streaki | No increase yet | N/A |
| Betai | 0.94 | 1.06 |
| Debt/equityi | 109.63 | 134.30 |
| Current ratioi | 0.22 | 0.10 |
| Quick ratioi | 0.13 | 0.07 |
Over the past year, PSA and CUBE have moved strongly in the same direction (correlation of 0.85), based on daily returns.
Lower drawdown and smaller single-period drops generally indicate a smoother ride, though they do not guarantee lower future risk.
| Period | Metric | PSA | CUBE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1Y | Growthi | +9.64% | +2.50% |
| CAGRi | +9.66% | +2.50% | |
| Volatilityi | 23.45% | 21.81% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.32 | 0.02 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.47 | 0.02 | |
| Max drawdowni | 14.77% | 14.20% | |
| Current drawdowni | 4.06% | 3.34% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 5.17% | 6.02% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 6.65% | 6.94% | |
| Max daily dropi | 4.16% | 4.00% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 10.73% | 7.19% | |
| 5Y | Growthi | +12.42% | -25.32% |
| CAGRi | +2.37% | -5.67% | |
| Volatilityi | 24.21% | 25.54% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.03 | -0.28 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.05 | -0.39 | |
| Max drawdowni | 37.93% | 41.63% | |
| Current drawdowni | 12.20% | 27.96% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 19.15% | 23.70% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 20.94% | 25.18% | |
| Max daily dropi | 8.00% | 8.63% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 12.88% | 14.63% | |
| 10Y | Growthi | +108.84% | +57.58% |
| CAGRi | +7.65% | +4.66% | |
| Volatilityi | 23.53% | 25.31% | |
| Sharpe ratioi | 0.24 | 0.13 | |
| Sortino ratioi | 0.33 | 0.18 | |
| Max drawdowni | 37.93% | 42.58% | |
| Current drawdowni | 12.20% | 27.96% | |
| Avg drawdowni | 13.92% | 15.81% | |
| Ulcer Indexi | 16.82% | 19.39% | |
| Max daily dropi | 11.53% | 17.39% | |
| Max wkly dropi | 18.98% | 25.09% |
| Category | PSA | CUBE |
|---|---|---|
| Company | Public Storage | CubeSmart |
| Sector | Real Estate | Real Estate |
| Industry | REIT - Industrial | REIT - Industrial |
| Core business | The largest self-storage real estate investment trust in the United States, owning and operating an extensive network of self-storage facilities serving residential and commercial customers across the country. | A self-storage real estate investment trust that owns, operates, and manages self-storage facilities serving residential and commercial customers across numerous metropolitan markets in the United States. |
| Investor focus | Same-store net operating income growth across its facility network, occupancy and rental rate trends, and acquisition activity consolidating smaller self-storage operators. | Same-store net operating income growth, third-party management platform growth as an asset-light expansion avenue, and digital marketing and customer acquisition effectiveness. |
- Position as the largest self-storage operator provides significant scale advantages in brand recognition, marketing, and operating efficiency
- Extensive facility network across many markets provides diversification and resilience against localized demand fluctuations
- Active acquisition strategy consolidating smaller, independently operated self-storage facilities provides an additional growth avenue
- Third-party management platform allows the company to grow its operating footprint and brand presence without owning every managed facility
- Strong digital marketing and technology capabilities support customer acquisition and pricing optimization across its facility network
- Diversified facility network across numerous metropolitan markets reduces reliance on any single local market's demand trends
- Self-storage demand can moderate during periods of reduced household mobility or slower housing market turnover
- New self-storage facility development by competitors in certain markets can create periods of oversupply pressure
- Same-store rental rate growth has historically been cyclical, with periods of strong pricing power followed by more moderate growth
- Smaller scale relative to the largest self-storage operator provides somewhat less brand recognition and market influence
- Self-storage demand can moderate during periods of reduced household mobility or slower housing market turnover
- New self-storage facility development by competitors in certain markets can create periods of oversupply pressure
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