Crown Castle International Corp vs Realty Income Corp — how do they compare? Crown Castle International Corp trades at $73.76 (market cap $31.32B), while Realty Income Corp trades at $61.8 (market cap $58.56B). The key difference: Realty Income Corp is the larger of the two by market cap, and Crown Castle International Corp pays the higher dividend (5.77%). Which is the better fit depends on your goals.
| CCI | O | |
|---|---|---|
Market Cap | $31.32B | $58.56B |
Sector | Real Estate | Real Estate |
52-Week High | $103.79 | $67.56 |
52-Week Low | $73.61 | $55.93 |
Enterprise Value | $53.68B | $89.19B |
Dividend Yield | 5.77% | 5.25% |
Signals from Pluang's Aura AI — not financial advice
Crown Castle (CCI) trades at $75.59, up 0.89% on the day, but technical indicators signal a bearish trend with the stock near recent lows. The company reported mixed quarterly earnings, beating in Q2 2026 but missing in Q1, while revenue has declined from $7.0B in 2023 to $4.26B in 2025. Analyst consensus is split evenly between Buy and Hold with a $95.29 price target, suggesting potential upside. Recent news highlights strategic shifts, including the sale of its fiber business and a focus on U.S. tower operations.
The outlook for CCI hinges on execution of its pure-play tower strategy amid high debt levels and competitive pressures. Investment appeal lies in its 5.5% dividend yield and discounted valuation, but risks include declining revenue, negative shareholder equity, and sensitivity to interest rates. Wall Street sees value if operational improvements materialize.
Realty Income (O) trades at $62.51, up 0.24% today, with a bearish technical signal from moving averages but bullish oscillators like RSI. The REIT reported Q2 2026 AFFO of $1.09 per share, matching estimates, and raised full-year guidance, supported by a 98.8% occupancy rate. Recent news highlights its high dividend yield and 115th consecutive quarterly increase, alongside a $6 billion data center joint venture announced in August 2026.
Outlook: Strong dividend growth and strategic expansion into data centers offer upside, but high P/E of 45.63 and recent EPS misses pose valuation risks. Analysts target $67.13 consensus, implying modest growth, with debt-to-asset ratio rising to 39.93% in 2025 signaling financial leverage concerns.
Trailing returns across standard periods
Latest headlines on both assets
Crown Castle International owns and leases roughly 40,000 cell towers in the United States. It also owns more than 85,000 route miles of fiber. It leases space on its towers to wireless service providers, which install equipment on the towers to support their wireless networks. The company's fiber is primarily leased by wireless service providers to set up small-cell network infrastructure and by enterprises for their internal connection needs. Crown Castle's towers and fiber are predominantly located in the largest U.S. cities. The company has a very concentrated customer base, with more than 70% of its revenue coming from the big three U.S. mobile carriers. Crown Castle operates as a real estate investment trust.
Read more on CCI →Realty Income owns roughly 11,400 properties, most of which are freestanding, single-tenant, triple-net-leased retail properties. Its properties are located in 49 states and Puerto Rico and are leased to 250 tenants from 47 industries. Recent acquisitions have added industrial, office, manufacturing, and distribution properties, which make up roughly 17% of revenue.
Read more on O →