REXR vs STAG: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?
Last updated August 2026
Short answer
REXR (Rexford Industrial Realty) and STAG (STAG Industrial) share investment themes but are different businesses. The right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme.
REXR vs STAG: the tie-breaker metrics
Same yardstick, side by side (as of August 2026). Valuation lined up like this is most meaningful for two names in the same corner of the market, which these are. Figures are approximate; verify before investing.
| Metric | REXR | STAG | What it tells you |
|---|---|---|---|
| Market cap | $8.64B | $7.53B | Size. The larger name is the incumbent; the smaller has more room to grow and more to prove. |
| Forward P/E | 39.97 | 43.48 | Valuation on next year's expected earnings, the same yardstick for both. Lower is cheaper for that growth; higher means the market is paying up. |
| Beta | 1.23 | 0.98 | Volatility vs the market. Above 1 swings harder than the index; below 1 is steadier. Higher beta means bigger drawdowns to hold through. |
| Price vs 52-week range | 46% of range | 48% of range | Where today's price sits between the 52-week low and high. Near the high is momentum with less margin of safety; near the low is out of favor or a discount, depending on why. |
| Price / book | 1.14 | 2.04 | How much you pay over book value. Very high can signal an asset-light, high-return business or a rich price. |
Before you buy: how REXR and STAG affect your concentration
The metrics above tell you which is the marginally better business. The bigger risk for most people is not picking the slightly worse stock, it is over-concentrating. REXR and STAG share themes, so owning both, or adding either to what you already hold, can quietly push a large share of your portfolio into one bet.
This is the part a generic comparison page cannot answer, because it depends on what you own. Connect your brokerage and Walnut shows your real, combined REXR and STAG exposure, flags overlap with your existing positions, and tells you if adding one would tip you past a concentration you are comfortable with, read-only by default, with your login staying at your broker. Walnut is not an investment adviser.
What does Rexford Industrial Realty (REXR) do?
Rexford Industrial Realty is a self-managed real estate investment trust that owns, operates, and repositions industrial properties (warehouses, distribution, and light-manufacturing space) exclusively in the infill submarkets of Southern California. As of the first quarter of 2026 the portfolio spanned roughly 414 properties and about 50.4 million rentable square feet, leased to a diverse tenant base at a same-property occupancy near 96%. The company's thesis rests on the region being the fourth-largest industrial market globally, with structurally low supply (regulatory and land constraints make new construction hard) and historically strong tenant demand.
What does STAG Industrial (STAG) do?
STAG Industrial is a real estate investment trust that acquires, owns, and operates single-tenant industrial properties, mostly warehouse and distribution buildings, across the United States. As of the end of 2025 the portfolio spanned about 601 buildings and roughly 120 million rentable square feet in 41 states, with a deliberate tilt toward Midwestern and Eastern secondary (CBRE-EA Tier 1) markets rather than the coastal, infill locations favored by peers like Prologis and Rexford. The company grows by buying individual buildings at attractive cap rates, diversifying across tenants and industries, and marking rents higher as leases roll.
REXR vs STAG: how do they differ?
Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.
- REXR drivers: Supply-constrained core market; Embedded rent mark-to-market.
- STAG drivers: Structural logistics and e-commerce demand; Acquisition-driven external growth in secondary markets.
Which fits which kind of investor
A faster-growing, richer-valued name usually swings harder, so it suits a longer horizon and a higher tolerance for volatility; a steadier, more cash-generative business suits a more conservative or income-minded investor. The honest test is which set of risks you could hold through a drawdown: The dominant risk is concentration: Rexford is almost entirely exposed to a single regional economy, so a downturn in Southern California logistics, port volumes, or manufacturing hits the whole portfolio at once. For STAG, as a REIT, STAG is sensitive to interest rates: higher long-term yields raise borrowing costs, pressure property values, and make its dividend yield less attractive versus bonds.
REXR or STAG: which should you pick?
REXR vs STAG: the full fundamentals
REXR. Rexford beat estimates in the first quarter of 2026 (net income of about $87.9 million, or $0.38 per diluted share) and raised full-year Core FFO guidance on the back of record leasing and buybacks. The stock trades at a premium multiple (a high-20s price-to-AFFO and a P/E in the high 30s), reflecting asset quality rather than rapid growth. Core FFO per share was roughly flat to slightly down year over year as the Southern California market softened.
STAG. STAG trades at roughly 15x to 16x Core FFO, a reasonable multiple for a diversified mid-cap industrial REIT and typically a discount to premium peers like Prologis, Rexford, and EastGroup. The well-covered payout (under 60% of Core FFO) and mid-single-digit FFO growth frame it as an income-and-modest-growth holding. Note the cadence change described in the FAQs: STAG shifted from its long-standing monthly dividend to a quarterly payout in 2026.
Headline figures (approximate, July 2026): REXR shows market cap ~$7.7B, share price ~$35-36, revenue (ttm) ~$975M, q1 2026 revenue ~$245M; STAG shows revenue (2025) ~$845M (up ~10% YoY), core ffo per share (2025) ~$2.55, core ffo per share (q1 2026) ~$0.65 (up ~6.6% YoY), annual dividend rate (2026) ~$1.55 per share.
The bottom line: REXR vs STAG
REXR and STAG are related but distinct: same themes, different businesses and risks. Neither wins in the abstract; the right pick is whichever thesis you actually believe, sized so you are not over-concentrated in one theme. Walnut can show your combined REXR and STAG exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.
Wondering how REXR or STAG fits the portfolio you already own? Walnut is an AI investing app that connects your brokerage read-only and answers questions like that about your actual holdings: overlap, concentration, and how each position tracks the S&P 500. Compare the best AI portfolio analyzers or see the best AI investing apps in 2026.
Investing in Rexford Industrial Realty with AI
Connect the broker you already use and ask Walnut's AI how REXR fits what you actually hold: whether you own it already through a fund, what it would do to your concentration, and how it has tracked the S&P 500. Read-only by default, and you approve anything before it reaches your broker.
FAQ
What is the difference between REXR and STAG?
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Rexford Industrial Realty is a self-managed real estate investment trust that owns, operates, and repositions industrial properties (warehouses, distribution, and light-manufacturing space) exclusively in the infill submarkets of Southern California. STAG Industrial is a real estate investment trust that acquires, owns, and operates single-tenant industrial properties, mostly warehouse and distribution buildings, across the United States. They show up together because they share investment themes, but they are different businesses, so the better fit depends on which thesis you are expressing.
Is REXR or STAG the better stock?
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Neither is universally better; they suit different views and risk levels. Walnut is informational, not investment advice. Compare what each does, the tie-breaker metrics above, and the risks, then decide which fits your thesis and what you already own.
Which is cheaper, REXR or STAG?
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On forward P/E (as of August 2026), REXR trades at 39.97x and STAG at 43.48x, so REXR is the cheaper of the two on next year's expected earnings. A lower multiple is not automatically the better buy: a richer valuation can be justified by faster growth, and a lower one can reflect real risk. Weigh the multiple against how fast each business is compounding.
Should you own both REXR and STAG?
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Because they share themes, owning both concentrates you in that theme. That can be intentional (a focused bet) or accidental (less diversification than it looks). Walnut can show your combined exposure across both, and whether adding either over-concentrates you, before you buy.
What are the risks of REXR vs STAG?
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REXR: The dominant risk is concentration: Rexford is almost entirely exposed to a single regional economy, so a downturn in Southern California logistics, port volumes, or manufacturing hits the whole portfolio at once. In early 2026 the infill market saw negative net absorption and rising vacancy, and total portfolio NOI declined year over year, showing the cycle can turn against even scarce assets. Higher interest rates raise borrowing and refinancing costs for a capital-intensive REIT and pressure the valuations of income stocks broadly. Tariffs, port-traffic shifts, and tenant credit stress could weaken demand from the importers and distributors that fill these warehouses. Finally, the shares trade at a premium multiple to slower-growing peers, so any growth disappointment could compress the valuation. STAG: As a REIT, STAG is sensitive to interest rates: higher long-term yields raise borrowing costs, pressure property values, and make its dividend yield less attractive versus bonds. Its single-tenant structure means a vacated building generates zero income until re-leased, so tenant defaults or non-renewals create lumpier downside than multi-tenant portfolios. The secondary-market focus can bring softer rent growth and thinner buyer demand than coastal infill assets during downturns. Growth depends heavily on continued accretive acquisitions, which becomes harder when cap rates compress or capital is expensive. Finally, a broad slowdown in e-commerce, manufacturing, or logistics demand would weigh on occupancy and leasing spreads.
Walnut is informational, not investment advice. This page is descriptive and not a recommendation to buy or sell REXR or STAG; figures are approximate and dated (as of August 2026). Verify current data before investing.