Portsmouth, New Hampshire-based Iron Mountain Incorporated (IRM) provides records management, data management solutions, and information destruction services. Valued at $30.1 billion by market cap, the company serves banking, energy, entertainment, health care, insurance, law firm, life science, retail, and pharmaceutical industries.
Companies worth $10 billion or more are generally described as “large-cap stocks,” and IRM perfectly fits that description, with its market cap exceeding this mark, underscoring its size, influence, and dominance within the REIT - specialty industry.
Despite its notable strength, IRM slipped 21.1% from its 52-week high of $130.24, achieved on Oct. 25, 2024. Over the past three months, IRM stock gained 15.3%, outperforming the Dow Jones Industrials Average’s ($DOWI) marginal gains during the same time frame.
In the longer term, shares of IRM dipped 2.2% on a YTD basis, underperforming DOWI’s YTD marginal losses. However, the stock climbed 16.4% over the past 52 weeks, outperforming DOWI’s 9.2% returns over the last year.
To confirm the bearish trend, IRM is trading below its 200-day moving average since late January, with minor fluctuations. However, the stock has been trading above its 50-day moving average since late April.
IRM's strong performance can be attributed to its focus on cash flow in storage and records management, as well as growth in the data center business through strategic acquisitions. The company's expansion strategy includes organic growth efforts and capital recycling to support its growth endeavors. Additionally, IRM's legacy physical storage operations saw stable demand, while its growth businesses grew by over 20%. Overall, the company's results reflect solid performance across all segments, highlighting its successful growth strategy for Project Matterhorn.
On May 1, IRM shares closed up more than 2% after reporting its Q1 results. Its adjusted FFO of $1.17 per share exceeded Wall Street expectations of $1.16 per share. The company’s revenue was $1.59 billion, missing Wall Street forecasts of $1.60 billion. IRM expects full-year adjusted FFO in the range of $4.95 to $5.05 per share, and expects revenue in the range of $6.7 billion to $6.9 billion.
In the competitive arena of REIT - specialty, Digital Realty Trust, Inc. (DLR) has taken the lead over IRM, showing resilience with a marginal loss on a YTD basis and 18.2% uptick over the past 52 weeks.
Wall Street analysts are bullish on IRM’s prospects. The stock has a consensus “Strong Buy” rating from the nine analysts covering it, and the mean price target of $115.78 suggests a potential upside of 12.7% from current price levels.
