According to CNBC, opposition to new artificial intelligence data centers could support real estate investment trusts that already own and lease data center space, even as protests, zoning limits and a New York moratorium slow some new projects. PwC projects annual data center spending will rise to $1.8 trillion in 2050 from roughly $800 billion in 2026, while Nareit said data center REITs account for 13% of the total U.S. REIT market capitalization of $1.5 trillion. The article said Digital Realty Trust, Equinix and Iron Mountain are the three data center stocks in the FTSE Nareit Equity REITs Index. Equinix has a market value of about $102 billion, a 1.99% dividend yield and is up about 37% year to date; Digital Realty Trust has a market cap of $71 billion, yields 2.59% and is up more than 23% in 2026; Iron Mountain has a 2.96% dividend yield, has gained 42% this year and has a market cap of $34.7 billion. Equinix recently signed a deal with Nvidia, and the company said its second-quarter adjusted funds from operations topped expectations when it reported results and raised full-year guidance in July. Digital Realty Trust also reported adjusted FFO above analyst estimates and lifted full-year guidance in July, while Iron Mountain said second-quarter AFFO beat expectations and it raised full-year guidance.
