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. or Crown Castle 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. and Crown Castle Inc. compare based on key financial metrics to determine which better meets your investment needs.

About Digital Realty Trust, Inc. and Crown Castle 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.

Crown Castle owns, operates and leases approximately 40,000 cell towers across the U.S. This nationwide portfolio serves as the foundation of wireless connectivity that provides cities and communities access to essential data, technology and wireless service – bringing information, ideas, innovations and the connectivity of modern life to help people and businesses thrive. Crown Castle Inc. was established in 1994 and was incorporated in Delaware.

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

As of September 4, 2026, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. had a $69.9 billion market capitalization, compared to the Specialized REITs median of $7.5 million. Digital Realty Trust, Inc.’s stock is up 21.8% in 2026, up 1.6% in the previous five trading days and up 15.69% in the past year.

Currently, Digital Realty Trust, Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 90.7. 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 2.6% dividend yield.

As of September 4, 2026, Crown Castle Inc. had a $32.3 billion market cap, putting it in the 90th percentile of all stocks. Crown Castle Inc.’s stock is down 14.7% in 2026, down 0.4% in the previous five trading days and down 20.56% in the past year.

Currently, Crown Castle Inc.’s price-earnings ratio is 31.0. Crown Castle Inc.’s trailing 12-month revenue is $4.2 billion with a 20.7% net profit margin. Year-over-year quarterly sales growth most recently was -4.9%. Analysts expect adjusted earnings to reach $2.305 per share for the current fiscal year. Crown Castle Inc. currently has a 5.6% dividend yield.

How We Compare Digital Realty Trust, Inc. and Crown Castle 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. and Crown Castle Inc.’s stock grades to see how they measure up against one another.

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Digital Realty Trust, Inc. and Crown Castle Inc. Stock Value Grades

Company	Ticker	Value
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.	DLR	F
Crown Castle Inc.	CCI	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 9, which is Ultra Expensive. Crown Castle Inc. has a Value Score of 20, which is Ultra Expensive.

The Value Stock Winner: No Clear Winner

Neither Digital Realty Trust, Inc. or Crown Castle 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. or Crown Castle Inc. is the better investment when it comes to value.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc. and Crown Castle Inc.’s Quality Grades

Company	Ticker	Quality
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.	DLR	D
Crown Castle Inc.	CCI	A

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. Crown Castle Inc. has a Quality Score of 91, which is Very Strong.

The Quality Grade Winner: Crown Castle Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Quality Grade breakdown above, Crown Castle Inc. has a better overall quality grade than Digital Realty Trust, Inc.. For investors who are looking for companies with higher quality than others in the same industry, Crown Castle Inc. could be a good stock to add to their portfolios. However, it’s important for investors to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc. and Crown Castle Inc.’s Estimate Revisions Grades

Company	Ticker	Earnings Estimate
Digital Realty Trust, Inc.	DLR	B
Crown Castle Inc.	CCI	C

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

Estimate revisions offer an indication of what analysts are thinking about the short-term prospects of a firm. Estimate revisions are based on the statistical significance of a firm’s last two quarterly earnings surprises and the percentage change in its consensus estimate for the current fiscal year over the past month and past three months.

Digital Realty Trust, Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 73, which is Positive. Crown Castle Inc. has a Earnings Estimate Score of 55, which is Neutral.

The Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade Winner: Digital Realty Trust, Inc.

As you can clearly see from the Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade breakdown above, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. has a better Earnings Estimate Revisions Grade than Crown Castle Inc.. For those who are specifically looking for companies with better short-term prospects when compared to other companies in the same industry, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. could be a good stock to invest in. However, it’s important to analyze multiple factors based on a wide range of metrics before deciding whether to buy.

Other Digital Realty Trust, Inc. and Crown Castle Inc. Grades

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

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.

Growth investing builds on the idea that stocks of companies exhibiting strong, consistent and prolonged growth outperform those of slower-growth companies. AAII measures growth through consistency of annual sales growth, five-year sales growth rankings adjusted for extreme levels, and consistency of positive annual cash from operations.

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. and Crown Castle 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. or Crown Castle Inc. Stock?

Overall, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. stock has a Value Score of 9, Estimate Revisions Score of 73 and Quality Score of 39.

Crown Castle Inc. stock has a Value Score of 20, Estimate Revisions Score of 55 and Quality Score of 91.

Comparing Digital Realty Trust, Inc. and Crown Castle 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.