SKT vs SPG: Which Is the Better Buy in 2026?

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.

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. SKT and SPG 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 SKT and SPG 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.

Tanger owns and manages open-air shopping centers and collects rent from the brands that occupy them. At June 30, 2026 the portfolio held 42 centers and nearly 17 million square feet: 38 outlet centers and 4 lifestyle centers, of which 35 are consolidated, 6 sit in unconsolidated joint ventures and one is managed for a third party. Revenue arrives as contractual base rent, tenant reimbursements for operating costs and taxes, and percentage rent that scales with what shops actually sell, so the landlord participates in a good year without carrying inventory risk. The company is structured as an UPREIT, with the properties held through Tanger Properties Limited Partnership. Trailing twelve-month revenue to June 30, 2026 was ~$627.8 million, up from ~$595.1 million in fiscal 2025 and ~$472.7 million in 2023. Second-quarter revenue alone reached ~$156.4 million against ~$140.7 million a year earlier. Leasing volume tells you how much of the portfolio turns over: 652 leases covering 3.3 million square feet in the trailing twelve months, more than double the 1.5 million square feet signed in 2019. Non-apparel and non-footwear tenants now hold ~32% of gross leasable area, against ~19% in 2019.

Full SKT guide

Simon Property Group is an Indianapolis-based real estate investment trust (REIT) and an S&P 100 constituent. It owns, develops, and manages premier shopping, dining, entertainment, and mixed-use destinations across North America, Europe, and Asia. As of December 31, 2025, the company held interests in 212 US income-producing properties and 42 international properties, along with a 22.2% stake in Klépierre, a Paris-based retail real estate company. SPG makes money primarily by leasing space to retail, dining, and entertainment tenants at its malls and Premium Outlets, collecting base rent plus a share of tenant sales. With a gross margin near 86% and domestic mall and outlet occupancy of approximately 96%, the business model benefits from scale: SPG's size gives it access to lower-cost capital, stronger lease negotiation leverage with global retail chains, and the financial capacity to fund redevelopments that smaller operators cannot.

Full SPG guide

Both fit overlapping themes, but they are not interchangeable. The useful comparison is which set of drivers and risks you want exposure to.

• SKT drivers: Rent spreads carry the growth, because occupancy cannot; The open-air and mixed-use acquisitions.
• SPG drivers: Premium Portfolio with Near-Full Occupancy; Consistent NOI and FFO Growth.

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 clearest risk sits inside the balance sheet that currently looks strong. For SPG, the most significant structural risk is continued e-commerce penetration that gradually reduces the number of viable retail tenants and pressures occupancy and rents even at premium properties.

Pick SKT if you believe its drivers more; SPG if you believe its. Many investors hold both, but since they share themes, that is a concentrated bet, not diversification. Decide deliberately and check overlap. For the full detail, see the SKT and SPG guides.

SKT. The two multiples on SKT tell different stories on purpose. A 35 times P/E reflects depreciation charged against centers whose rents are rising, while ~15.4 times guided Core FFO is the figure the REIT market actually transacts on, and it sits in the middle of the open-air retail REIT range, at neither end of it. What the buyer is paying for is a mid-single-digit internal growth rate compounded by acquisitions bought at initial yields near 8.5%, funded from a balance sheet at 4.7 times leverage.

SPG. Because SPG is a REIT, Funds from Operations (FFO) is the industry-standard profitability metric rather than GAAP net income, which is inflated by depreciation add-backs and one-time gains. The trailing GAAP P/E of roughly 14x looks inexpensive relative to the company's 10-year average of about 22x, but the more meaningful forward price-to-Real Estate FFO multiple is in the low-to-mid teens, broadly in line with high-quality retail REIT peers. The company's ~$29 billion debt load is large in absolute terms but is supported by an A-rated credit profile, a $5 billion revolving credit facility, and stable NOI coverage.

Headline figures (approximate, August 2026): SKT shows revenue (ttm) ~$627.8 million for the twelve months to June 30, 2026, against ~$595.1 million in fiscal 2025, ~$537.4 million in 2024 and ~$472.7 million in 2023, a compound growth rate in the low teens driven by both releasing spreads and acquired centers. Second-quarter 2026 revenue was ~$156.4 million versus ~$140.7 million a year earlier., earnings and core ffo GAAP net income of ~$126.1 million and diluted EPS of ~$1.09 for the twelve months to June 30, 2026, up from ~$0.99 in fiscal 2025 and ~$0.88 in 2024. Core FFO per diluted share reached $0.64 in the second quarter (+10.3% year over year) and $1.23 for the first half. Management's 2026 guidance is $2.45 to $2.52 of Core FFO against $1.06 to $1.13 of GAAP net income per share, and the ~$1.40 gap is almost entirely real estate depreciation., operating metrics Occupancy of 96.6% at June 30, 2026, level with a year earlier and down from 97.0% at March 31. Blended releasing spreads of +10.5% on a cash basis (+28.4% re-tenanted, +7.7% renewals), an 18th consecutive positive quarter. Trailing twelve-month tenant sales of $487 per square foot versus $465. Occupancy cost ratio of 9.7%. Same-center NOI of ~$106.9 million in the quarter, +3.5%., cash flow and balance sheet Operating cash flow of ~$301.7 million and free cash flow of ~$114.8 million on a trailing basis, with EBITDA around $337 million. Total debt of ~$2.0 billion against ~$181 million of cash for net debt of ~$1.77 billion, or 4.7 times adjusted EBITDAre, inside the company's 5 to 6 times target. All debt fixed at a weighted average ~3.9% with ~3.3 years of weighted average maturity, and ~$1.0 billion of available liquidity.; SPG shows revenue (ttm) ~$6.65 billion, real estate ffo (fy 2025) ~$12.73 per diluted share, 2026 real estate ffo guidance $13.10 to $13.25 per diluted share, trailing p/e (gaap) ~14x (based on elevated 2025 GAAP earnings).

SKT and SPG 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 SKT and SPG exposure against your real portfolio. It is not an investment adviser.