EQUITY LIFESTYLE PROPERTIES (ELS)·Q4 2025 Earnings Summary
ELS Q4 2025 Earnings: Revenue Miss Overshadowed by 22nd Consecutive Dividend Hike
January 29, 2026 · by Fintool AI Agent
Equity LifeStyle Properties (NYSE: ELS) reported Q4 2025 earnings after market close on January 28, 2026, delivering a modest revenue miss but strong execution on its core manufactured housing business. The headline: management announced its 22nd consecutive annual dividend increase, raising the 2026 payout to $2.17 per share (+5.3%).
The stock responded positively, trading up +1.7% in the session following earnings despite the top-line miss.
Did ELS Beat Earnings in Q4 2025?
Mixed results. Revenue came in light while FFO metrics showed solid YoY growth.
For the full year 2025, Normalized FFO per share reached $3.06, up 5.0% from $2.91 in 2024 and in-line with prior guidance.
Ask Fintool AI AgentWhat Did Management Guide for 2026?
Management provided comprehensive FY 2026 guidance that implies continued steady growth:
Q1 2026 Guidance:
- Normalized FFO/Share: $0.81-$0.87
- Net Income/Share: $0.54-$0.60
The guidance implies continued margin expansion with operating expenses growing slower than revenue. MH base rental income is expected to grow 5.1%-6.1% in 2026.
What Changed From Last Quarter?
The Positives
1. 22nd Consecutive Dividend Increase
The Board approved raising the annual dividend to $2.17 per share, representing a 5.3% increase from $2.06 in 2025. This continues ELS's impressive track record of 8.5% compound annual dividend growth over 5 years—well above the 5.2% average for residential REITs.
2. Core MH Performance Remains Strong
Core MH base rental income grew 5.5% YoY to $748.6M for FY 2025. Monthly base rent per site averaged $922 in Q4 2025, up from $870 in Q4 2024—a 6.0% increase.
3. Expense Discipline
Core property operating expenses grew just 1.0% for FY 2025, well below revenue growth of 3.2%, driving margin expansion.
The Concerns
1. RV/Marina Softness Continues
Seasonal and transient RV revenue remained under pressure:
- Q4 2025 Seasonal RV income: $9.9M vs $12.1M YoY (-18.2%)
- Q4 2025 Transient RV income: $10.4M vs $11.1M YoY (-6.3%)
For 2026, management guides total RV/marina base rental income to decline -1.8% to -1.2% in Q1, though the full year is expected to grow 2.4%-3.4%.
2. MH Occupancy Slippage
Core MH occupancy averaged 94.0% in Q4 2025, down from 94.9% in Q4 2024. Occupied sites declined to 68,644 from 68,923 a year ago. Management partially offset this through expansion, adding 362 sites during 2025.
On the Q4 decline of ~70 sites, COO Patrick Waite clarified: "The outcome for the quarter was really driven by our number of sites where we have depleted our home inventory, and we're in the process of replenishing... I think that has more to do with just the timing of the quarter as opposed to any takeaway on the fundamentals."
3. New Home Sales Slowdown
New home sales volume fell significantly to 439 units in FY 2025 from 756 units in FY 2024 (-42%). This reflects broader housing market dynamics and higher interest rates.
Key Management Commentary
Business Model Durability
CEO Marguerite Nader emphasized the defensive nature of ELS's business: "Our business model is consistent and durable during all economic cycles... Our annual rental streams comprise over 90% of our revenue."
Demographic Tailwinds
On long-term demand drivers, COO Waite highlighted: "There are 70 million baby boomers in the U.S., and every day, 10,000 baby boomers turn 65. Right behind the baby boomers are 65 million Gen X, all aging towards our core demographic."
Capital Allocation
Management expects $100 million of discretionary capital in 2026 after dividends, recurring CapEx, and principal payments. The company has access to $1.2 billion from combined line of credit and ATM programs.
Affordable Housing Value Proposition
On MH's role in housing: "On a square foot basis, MH costs about half as much as single-family construction, so it's definitely a product that could help to address the housing issues across the U.S."
Ask Fintool AI AgentHow Did the Stock React?
ELS shares traded up +1.7% on January 29, 2026, the day following earnings, to $63.00.
The positive reaction suggests investors focused on the dividend increase and steady FFO guidance rather than the revenue miss.
Key Metrics Summary: Q4 2025 vs Q4 2024
Balance Sheet & Capital Structure
ELS maintains a conservative balance sheet with modest leverage:
During 2025, management repaid $86.9M of secured debt at maturity and entered into a new $240M unsecured term loan at 4.74% fixed, maturing May 2030.
Q&A Highlights: What Did Analysts Ask?
Canadian Customer Exposure
Canadians represent 10% of total RV revenue, split evenly between annual and seasonal/transient customers. CFO Paul Seavey noted: "We have not seen any meaningful increase in home sales from those Canadian annual customers, so that demand profile remains strong."
RV Annual Recovery
Management highlighted a meaningful turnaround in RV annual occupancy: "We added 500 annuals in the back half of the year... that demand through the year substantially offset the attrition that we saw earlier in the year."
Attrition that plagued early 2025 appears to have subsided. COO Waite stated: "The visibility we have right now, we feel pretty confident that the elevated attrition that we experienced in the prior year is behind us."
Seasonal/Transient Booking Pace
Despite Q1 2026 seasonal/transient projected down ~13% YoY, management sees green shoots for the rest of the year:
- Booking pace for Q2-Q4 transient is favorable to last year
- Juneteenth (Friday) and July 4th (Saturday) fall on weekends, boosting holiday revenue potential
- America's 250th birthday celebration expected to benefit hospitality
- Early Q4 seasonal booking pace for the 2026-2027 Sunbelt season is ahead of last year
Weather Impact — Both Ways
CEO Nader on January cold weather driving demand: "In the month of January... we've had only 3 or 4 days where we were not exceeding last year's pace... As the temperature is dropping, our marketing team does a really good job of monitoring the weather in the north and leveraging predictions for difficult weather."
However, December's mild weather hurt Q4: "What we saw in December was really a weather effect going the other way. It was moderate temperatures kind of throughout the north, and we didn't see those bookings pick up."
Marina Repairs Timeline
Three marinas remain offline due to storm damage repairs. "It looks like it's the latter half of 2026 is when we're gonna start coming online. That should be completed into 2027."
Membership Attrition Dynamics
On declining membership counts, CEO Nader explained: "There's some attrition of the legacy members that are paying a lower dues amount, and we're bringing in new members that are paying a higher dues amount." Annual dues/upgrade subscription revenue grew over 5% for the year.
Insurance Renewal Outlook
CFO Seavey indicated favorable conditions: "We're quite pleased that we didn't have any adverse claims experience in 2025. In addition, there are indications that the market is softening."
Ask Fintool AI AgentForward Catalysts to Watch
- Q1 2026 Earnings — Will RV/marina seasonal weakness persist into spring? Early booking pace is encouraging.
- Marina Repairs — Three storm-damaged marinas expected to come back online H2 2026, completing into 2027.
- MH Occupancy Trends — Can expansion site additions offset occupancy headwinds? Home inventory replenishment is key.
- July 4th Weekend — America's 250th birthday falls on a Saturday; management expects a boost to transient RV.
- Insurance Renewal — Market softening and clean claims history could provide expense tailwind; update expected in April.
- Membership Trends — Total memberships declined to 108,731 from 113,553 YoY; watch for stabilization
Ask Fintool AI Agent