Public Storage Earnings: 2024 Guidance Implies Same-Store NOI Decline as Self-Storage Demand Slows

No-moat-rated Public Storage reported fourth-quarter results that were largely in line with our expectations. The firm reported core funds from operations, or FFO, of $4.20 per share, 1.0% higher than the $4.16 per share FFO during the fourth quarter of 2022. The company has guided for the full-year 2024 core FFO guidance range to $16.60-$17.20 per share, representing flattish growth at the midpoint when compared with the full-year 2023 core FFO of $16.89. The $16.90 per share midpoint of the full-year 2024 FFO guidance is also in line with our $16.96 estimate for the year. As we have pointed out previously, the growth in the self-storage sector was largely expected to slow down in 2024 after exceptionally strong years of pandemic-driven growth. We are maintaining our $317 per share fair value estimate for Public Storage after incorporating the fourth-quarter results.