Sifting through countless of stocks in the Specialized REITs industry can be tedious, and sometimes two stocks are just too similar to judge which is the better investment. If you’re on the fence about investing in Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix or Inc. because you’re not sure how they measure up, it’s important to compare them on a few factors before making your decision.

Read on to learn how Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc. brings companies and data together by delivering the full spectrum of data center, colocation, and interconnection solutions. Platform DIGITAL, the company’s global data center platform, provides customers with a secure data meeting place and a proven Pervasive Datacenter Architecture (PDx) solution methodology for powering innovation, from cloud and digital transformation to emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), and efficiently managing Data Gravity challenges. Digital Realty gives its customers access to the connected data communities that matter to them with a global data center footprint of 300+ facilities in 55+ metros across 30+ countries on six continents. Digital Realty Trust, Inc. was founded in 2004 and is based in Austin, Texas.

Equinix, Inc. shortens the path to boundless connectivity anywhere in the world. Its digital infrastructure, data center footprint and interconnected ecosystems empower innovations that enhance our work, life and planet. Equinix connects economies, countries, organizations and communities, delivering seamless digital experiences and cutting-edge AI quickly, efficiently and everywhere. Equinix, Inc. was established on June 22, 1998 and is based in Redwood City, United States.

Latest Specialized REITs and Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix, Inc. Stock News

As of September 2, 2026, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. had a $68.2 billion market capitalization, compared to the Specialized REITs median of $7.5 million. Digital Realty Trust, Inc.’s stock is up 18.9% in 2026, down 4.3% in the previous five trading days and up 12.77% in the past year.

Currently, Digital Realty Trust, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 88.4. Digital Realty Trust, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $6.8 billion with a 11.8% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 29.9%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $3.352 per share for the current fiscal year. Digital Realty Trust, Inc. currently has a 2.7% dividend yield.

As of September 2, 2026, Equinix, Inc. had a $100.6 billion market cap, putting it in the 97th percentile of all stocks. Equinix, Inc.’s stock is up 33.5% in 2026, down 5% in the previous five trading days and up 32.1% in the past year.

Currently, Equinix, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 65.5. Equinix, Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $9.9 billion with a 15.5% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was 16.7%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $17.883 per share for the current fiscal year. Equinix, Inc. currently has a 2.0% dividend yield.

How We Compare Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc. Stock Grades

Stock evaluation requires access to huge amounts of data and the knowledge and time to sift through it all, make sense of financial ratios, read income statements and analyze recent stock movements. AAII created A+ Investor, a robust data suite that condenses data research in an actionable and customizable way suitable for investors of all knowledge levels, to help investors streamline and work through such data.

AAII’s proprietary stock grades come with A+ Investor. These offer intuitive A‐F grades for each of five key investing factors: value, growth, momentum, earnings estimate revisions and quality. Here, we’ll take a closer look at Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc. Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.	DLR	F
Equinix, Inc.	EQIX	F

Successful stock investing involves buying low and selling high, so stock valuation is an important consideration for stock selection.

Buying stocks that are going to go up typically means buying stocks that are undervalued in the first place, although momentum investors may argue that point.

AAII’s A+ Investor Value Grade derives from a stock’s value score. The Value Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of the price-to-sales ratio, price-earnings ratio, enterprise-value-to-EBITDA (EV/EBITDA) ratio, shareholder yield, price-to-book-value ratio and price-to-free-cash-flow ratio. The score is variable, meaning it can consider all six ratios or, should any of the six ratios not be valid, the remaining ratios that are valid. To be assigned a Value Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) ratio and corresponding ranking for at least two of the six valuation ratios.

Stocks with a Value Score from 81 to 100 are considered deep value, those with a score between 61 and 80 are a good value and so on.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc. has a Value Score of 10, which is Ultra Expensive. Equinix, Inc. has a Value Score of 10, which is Ultra Expensive.

The Value Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix or Inc. has a high enough value grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolio. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix or Inc. is the better investment when it comes to value.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc. Growth Grades

Company	Ticker	Growth
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.	DLR	A
Equinix, Inc.	EQIX	A

The foundation of growth investing is seeking out stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth that is expected to continue into the future.

In order to compute the growth score and assign it a letter grade, the percentile ranks for each of three components‐consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations‐must be determined. These three rank figures are added together, and the sum is ranked against the entire stock universe to arrive at a company’s Growth Score to create an equal distribution of grades.

The companies in the bottom 20% of the stock universe receive Growth Grades of F, considered to be very weak, while those in the top 20% receive A grades, which are considered very strong.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc. has a Growth Score of 95, which is Very Strong. Equinix, Inc. has a Growth Score of 89, which is Very Strong.

The Growth Grade Winner: It’s a Tie!

Looking at the Growth Grade breakdown above, both Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc. have a grade of A. For investors who focus solely on a company’s upward growth, further research should be conducted into both companies’ other financial metrics before deciding whether to invest.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.	DLR	D
Equinix, Inc.	EQIX	C

Like the Value Grade, AAII’s A+ Investor Quality Grade comes from the percentile rank of key metrics. Specifically, the Quality Score is the percentile rank of the average of the percentile ranks of return on assets (ROA), return on invested capital (ROIC), gross profit relative to assets, buyback yield, change in total liabilities to assets, accruals, Z double prime bankruptcy risk (Z) score and the F-Score.

The score is variable, meaning it can consider all eight measures or, should any of the eight measures not be valid, the remaining measures that are valid. To be assigned a Quality Score, stocks must have a valid (non-null) measure and corresponding ranking for at least four of the eight quality measures.

The Quality Score is used to assess the underlying “quality” of a particular stock. A higher-quality stock possesses traits associated with upside potential and reduced downside risk. Backtesting of the Quality Grade shows that stocks with higher grades, on average, outperformed stocks with lower grades over the period of 1998 through 2019.

Stocks receive better grades (higher scores) for having higher scores for the quality subcomponents and worse grades (lower scores) for lower scores for the subcomponents.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc. has a Quality Score of 39, which is Weak. Equinix, Inc. has a Quality Score of 53, which is Average.

The Quality Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix or Inc. has a high enough Quality Grade to be considered a “winner.” Investors who are considering these companies should do additional due diligence and research to see if either could be a good addition to their portfolios. It’s important to look at a wide range of financial metrics in order to determine if Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix or Inc. is the better investment when it comes to quality.

Other Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc. Grades

In addition to Quality, Growth and Value, A+ Investor also provides grades for Momentum and Estimate Revisions.

Momentum grades help uncover stocks experiencing anomalously high rates of return; research finds that stocks with high relative levels of momentum tend to outperform, whereas those with low levels of momentum tend to continue underperforming.

Earnings estimate revisions scores take into account the magnitude of a company’s earnings surprise in its last two reported fiscal quarters. Often, surprises beget further surprises‐or at least continued sales growth (the exact opposite is generally true, too).

These 2 key factors, when combined with the above, provide a holistic view into a particular stock. Further, by joining A+ Investor you can see whether Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc. pass any of our 60+ stock screens that have outperformed the market since their creation.

So, Which Is the Better Investment, Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix or Inc. Stock?

Overall, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 10, Growth Score of 95 and Quality Score of 39.

Equinix, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 10, Growth Score of 89 and Quality Score of 53.

Comparing Digital Realty Trust, Inc., Equinix and Inc.’s grades, scores and metrics can act as a solid basis to determine whether they may be a good investment or not. You’ll also want to look at your portfolio’s asset allocation as well as your risk tolerance and financial goals to see if either of these stocks would make a good fit for you. AAII can help you figure out which investments align with your individual needs and preferences.

Investors are encouraged to do their own due diligence and research. In this way, individuals can effectively become managers of their own assets‐without having to rely on others for financial independence. You can count on AAII for timeless articles on financial planning and stock-picking, unbiased research and actionable analysis.

A+ Investor adds to our qualitative teaching with a powerful data suite to help you whittle down investment choices to find stocks, exchange-traded funds (ETFs) or mutual funds that meet your needs.

AAII Disclaimer

We make no representations or warranties that any investor will, or is likely to, achieve profits similar to those shown, because past, hypothetical or simulated performance is not necessarily indicative of future results. Before making an investment decision, you should consider your circumstances and whether the information on our content is applicable to your situation. This information was prepared in good faith, and we accept no liability for any errors or omissions. The full disclaimer can be read here.