Start here if you're new
what it is
MAA owns apartment communities and collects rent from them across the Southeast and Southwest.
how it gets paid
Last year Mid-America Apt made $2.2B in revenue.
why it's growing
Revenue grew 0.8% last year. The company reported core ffo of $2.16 per share as same-store average physical occupancy and renewal lease performance remained strong.
what just happened
MAA beat estimates with $1.7B of quarterly revenue.
At a glance
A balance sheet — strong enough to weather a downturn
65/100 earnings predictability — reasonably predictable
30.9x trailing p/e — you're paying up for this one
4.7% dividend yield — cash in your pocket every quarter
4.5% return on capital — nothing to write home about
xvary composite: 64/100 — average
What they do
MAA owns apartment communities and collects rent from them across the Southeast and Southwest.
MAA owns 100,894 apartment units across 296 properties. That is a lot of people making the same monthly mistake of paying rent. operating margin (profit after running the buildings) was 44.0%, so $44 of every $100 of rent stays before interest and taxes. 4.7% yield versus 30.9x earnings is the whole story: you get paid to wait, but you pay up for the wait.
How they make money
$2.2B
annual revenue · their business grew +0.8% last year
total revenue
$2.2B
+0.8%
The products that matter
owns and operates rental communities
Sunbelt apartment portfolio
$2.2B revenue · 100,000+ units
this is effectively the whole business. Same-store occupancy at 95.6% and renewal lease growth at 4.5% say the machine still works. Austin says not every market got the memo.
core
Key numbers
4.7%
dividend yield
That means about $6.24 a year for each $132.7 share. You are paid while you wait.
30.9x
trailing p/e
You are paying $30.90 for each $1 of last year's earnings. That is a pricey bill for a landlord.
$145
target price
That target is 9% above today. The upside is real, but it is not a fireworks budget.
100,894
units owned
That many units means one weak market does not break the story. It is a giant rent machine with 296 properties.
Financial health
A
strength
- balance sheet grade A — very strong financial position
- risk rank 2 — safer than 80% of stocks
- price stability 95 / 100
- net profit margin 21.4% — keeps 21 cents of every dollar in revenue
- return on equity 8% — $0.08 profit for every $1 investors have put in
A with balance sheet grade and risk rank standing out. your money faces less risk here than at most public companies.
Total return vs. market
You invested $10,000 in MAA 3 years ago → it's now worth $9,300.
The index would have given you $13,920.
source: institutional data · total return
What just happened
beat estimates
MAA beat estimates with $1.7B of quarterly revenue.
EDGAR showed $1.7B of revenue and $3.30 of EPS. The scale is the point. This is a rent collector with a giant balance sheet, not a story stock.
$1.7B
revenue
$3.30
eps
44.0%
gross margin
the number that mattered
The $1.7B revenue print matters because it shows the rent machine still runs at scale.
-
mid-america apartment communities reported third-quarter results in line with expectations.the company reported core ffo of $2.16 per share as same-store average physical occupancy and renewal lease performance remained strong.
-
the former posted a slight sequential increase to 95.6%, while the latter registered at 4.5%, a 40 basis point improvement over the prior-year period.new supply pressure continues to moderate and absorption remains strong, with marketlevel occupancies, including lease-ups, at the highest levels since mid-2019. several mid-tier markets, particularly in the midatlantic region, continue to outperform relative to the portfolio. richmond and the washington d.c. area markets remain strong, while other markets including savannah, charleston and greenville demonstrated strong pricing power in the quarter.
-
austin, however, has been a laggard in 2025, as it continues to work through record supply pressure, resulting in weak new lease pricing.
-
there has been recent acquisition activity.in august, mid-america acquired a stabilized 318-unit multifamily apartment community built in 2024, located in the kansas city market. in october, this was followed by the acquisition of a land parcel adjacent to that same community, with plans for development of a multifamily expansion at the property. also in october, the company closed on the acquisition of a land parcel in the phoenix market, with construction beginning on a 280-unit multifamily apartment community in the current quarter.
-
the balance sheet includes ample liquidity exceeding $810 million.
source: company earnings report, 2026
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What could go wrong
the risk is not mysterious. MAA lives or dies on local apartment supply, local job growth, and whether 95.6% occupancy stays closer to normal than to optimistic.
med
Sunbelt supply keeps rent growth pinned down longer than investors expect
Austin is already the example management keeps pointing to. Too many new apartments hitting at once usually mean more concessions, slower renewal increases, and less room to protect margins.
MAA is at 95.6% same-store occupancy and 4.5% renewal lease growth today. Those do not need to break. They only need to drift lower for the market to cut the stock less slack.
med
the market is already pricing in cooling, but maybe not enough cooling
trailing revenue is $2.2B while fy2026 revenue estimates sit at $2B. That gap says expectations already came down. It does not guarantee they came down far enough.
if revenue slides toward $2B while the 44% operating margin compresses, a 30.9x trailing earnings multiple stops looking like quality and starts looking lazy.
med
this is a local jobs story wearing a diversified portfolio label
apartments follow employment, wages, and migration in specific metros. You own a broad Sunbelt footprint, but broad is not the same thing as immune.
a 21.3% net margin and 8% return on equity are fine while demand holds. If local labor markets soften and concessions rise, those numbers will be the part of the story heading the wrong way.
MAA's risk picture is unusually clean: almost all of the $2.2B revenue stream depends on occupancy staying high, renewal pricing staying positive, and supply-heavy markets healing before investors lose patience.
source: institutional data · regulatory filings · risk analysis
Pay attention to
earnings
next quarterly update
here's the thing: if occupancy stays near 95.6% and Austin is still the only obvious weak spot, the thesis survives another quarter.
leasing
renewal lease rate
4.5% renewal lease growth is still healthy. If that cools, pricing pressure is moving beyond one noisy market.
margin
44% operating margin
that margin is the proof that scale is working. If new supply forces more concessions, this is where the damage shows up fast.
risk
Austin supply digestion
management already told you where the weak spot is. If Austin stops getting worse, sentiment improves. If weakness spreads, the stock probably notices before the dividend does.
Analyst rankings
short-term outlook
below average
momentum score 4 — in human-speak, analysts think this stock could trail the average name over the next year.
risk profile
above average
stability score 2 — safer than roughly 80% of stocks, which is exactly what you want from a landlord paying 4.7%.
chart momentum
below average
technical score 4 — the chart is not doing any selling for management right now.
earnings predictability
65 / 100
reasonably steady, but supply-heavy metros can make a stable REIT look shakier than the headline occupancy rate suggests.
source: institutional data
Institutional activity
327 buyers vs. 352 sellers in 3q2025. total institutional holdings: 0.1B shares.
source: institutional data
Price targets
3-5 year target range
$114
$175
$133
current price
$145
target midpoint · +9% from current · 3-5yr high: $195 (+45% · 13% ann'l return)
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