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Essex Property Trust vs AvalonBay Communities: Fair Value & Quality

Both stocks run through our valuation models. Here is how Essex Property Trust (ESS) and AvalonBay Communities (AVB) compare, as of Aug 10, 2026.

As of Aug 10, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees AvalonBay Communities as the less overvalued of the two: Essex Property Trust trades at $288 versus a fair value of $178 (-38%), while AvalonBay Communities trades at $188 versus $126 (-33%).
Essex Property Trust
ESS · USD · Real Estate
-38%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$288
Fair Value$178
Quality63/100
AvalonBay Communities
AVB · USD · Real Estate
-33%
upside to fair value
overvalued
Price$188
Fair Value$126
Quality66/100

Head-to-head numbers

Green value = the better side for that row (for valuation multiples: lower = cheaper).

Essex Property TrustAvalonBay Communities
Valuation
30.8×P/E (TTM)22.3×
9.60×P/S (TTM)8.33×
3.40×P/B2.19×
20.0×EV/EBITDA18.4×
6.86×PEG6.49×
3.8%Dividend yield3.8%
$10.30Dividend per share$7.03
Profitability
29%Net margin37%
35%Operating margin29%
11%Return on equity10%
3%Return on assets3%
Growth
6%Revenue growth (YoY)3%
5.8%Avg. growth/yr (3Y)5.4%
4.9%Avg. growth/yr (5Y)5.7%
Balance & size
1.23×Debt / equity0.74×
$19BMarket cap$25B
healthyGrowth qualityhealthy

AvalonBay Communities leads: 5 to 9 metric wins.

Dash = not meaningfully computable, for example with negative equity.

Quality in detail

The quality score, broken down into the same factor families as on the stock page, 0 to 100 per family.

Essex Property Trustof which business quality 59 · market factors 70 AvalonBay Communitiesof which business quality 62 · market factors 59
ProfitabilityMargins and returns on capital today
42
40
Quality GrowthAre margins and returns improving?
39
52
CashflowEarnings quality: real cash, not paper profit
90
89
Fin. StrengthBalance sheet, leverage, solvency risk
30
42
InvestmentDisciplined investing over empire-building
87
81
Low VolatilityCalm price path (market factor)
86
83
MomentumPrice trend over the last 3–12 months (market factor)
57
47
52W MomentumDistance to the 52-week high (market factor)
74
52
Net IssuanceBuybacks instead of dilution
82
81

What the models say

The median fair value (base case) per model family, each in the currency of its trading venue. Green = above the current price, red = below.

Essex Property Trust

DCF Models$193
Multiples$178
Asset-Based$57.77
Growth DCF$152
Economic Profit$95.56

13 of 14 models see the stock below the current price.

AvalonBay Communities

DCF Models$133
Dividend Discount$123
Multiples$126
Asset-Based$54.84
Growth DCF$95.72
Economic Profit$77.36

16 of 16 models see the stock below the current price.

Scenario ranges

From our cautious bear case to the optimistic bull case. The white tick is the current price: left of fair value means room to run.

Essex Property Trust
Bear $84.19Fair Value $178Bull $227
$288 = current price (white tick)
AvalonBay Communities
Bear $71.82Fair Value $126Bull $158
$188 = current price (white tick)

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Ranked within their sector

Where each stock sits within its sector peer group. Band = middle 50% of peers, tick = median, dot = this stock.

Essex Property Trust · Real Estate

Quality score63 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-38% · below median

AvalonBay Communities · Real Estate

Quality score66 · Top 25%
Fair value upside-33% · below median

Bottom line

As of Aug 10, 2026, Fair Value Calculator sees AvalonBay Communities as the less overvalued of the two: Essex Property Trust trades at $288 versus a fair value of $178 (-38%), while AvalonBay Communities trades at $188 versus $126 (-33%).

AvalonBay Communities has the higher quality score (66/100).

See the full analysis →
Essex Property Trust · AvalonBay Communities

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A model-based valuation snapshot from 21 models. Values change with price and fundamentals; the date shown above applies.