ESS Should I Buy

Raymond James analyst Buck Horne downgraded Essex Property Trust to Market Perform from Outperform. Residential REITs are being downgraded as rental demand deterioration across multifamily and single-family rental segments accelerates into early 2026, raising concerns that consensus and recently issued 2026 guidance may prove too optimistic, the analyst tells investors in a research note. Despite management assumptions of a seasonally normal leasing recovery and improved 2H26 comps, weak leasing trends, elevated new supply and concessions, macro headwinds such as AI-driven job displacement and stricter immigration enforcement, and rising regulatory risks suggest downside risk to earnings expectations, the firm says.