Digital Realty Reports First Quarter 2026 Results
AUSTIN, Texas, April 23, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Digital Realty (NYSE: DLR), the world’s largest cloud- and carrier-neutral data center platform, announced today financial results for the first quarter of 2026. All per share results are presented on a fully diluted basis.
Highlights
Financial Results
Digital Realty reported total revenues of $1.6 billion in the first quarter of 2026, in line with the previous quarter and a 16% increase from the same quarter last year.
The company delivered net income of $175 million in the first quarter of 2026, as well as net income available to common stockholders of $169 million and $0.46 per share, compared to $0.24 per share in the previous quarter and $0.27 per share in the same quarter last year.
Digital Realty generated Adjusted EBITDA of $920 million in the first quarter of 2026, a 7% increase from the previous quarter and a 16% increase over the same quarter last year.
The company reported Funds From Operations (FFO) of $700 million in the first quarter of 2026, or $1.99 per share, compared to $1.89 per share in the previous quarter and $1.67 per share in the same quarter last year.
Excluding certain items that do not represent core expenses or revenue streams, Digital Realty delivered Core FFO per share of $2.04 in the first quarter of 2026, compared to $1.86 per share in the previous quarter and $1.77 per share in the same quarter last year. Digital Realty delivered Constant-Currency Core FFO per share of $1.96 in the first quarter of 2026.
"Digital Realty saw a further acceleration in data center demand and our growth trajectory in the first quarter, with record 0–1 megawatt plus interconnection leasing and the largest hyperscale lease in company history, which contributed to double-digit growth in Core FFO per share,” said Digital Realty President and Chief Executive Officer Andy Power. “We are swiftly advancing hyperscale AI-oriented capacity in the U.S., growing our connectivity-rich portfolio across key global markets, and broadening our capital base to prudently extend Digital Realty’s runway for growth."
Leasing Activity
In the first quarter, Digital Realty signed total bookings that are expected to generate $707 million of annualized GAAP rental revenue, at 100% share; at Digital Realty’s share, total bookings were $423 million, including a $79 million contribution from the 0-1 megawatt category and a $19 million contribution from interconnection.
The weighted-average lag between new leases signed during the first quarter of 2026 and the contractual commencement date was nineteen months. The backlog of signed-but-not-commenced leases at quarter-end was $1.8 billion of annualized GAAP base rent at 100% share, and $1.0 billion at Digital Realty’s share.
In addition, Digital Realty also signed renewal leases representing $193 million of annualized cash rental revenue during the quarter. Rental rates on renewal leases signed during the first quarter of 2026 increased 5.0% on a cash basis and 6.3% on a GAAP basis.
New leases signed during the first quarter of 2026, at Digital Realty’s share, are summarized by region and product as follows:
Note: Totals may not foot due to rounding differences.
(1) Other includes Powered Base Building ® shell capacity as well as storage and office space within fully improved data center facilities.
(2) Based on quarterly average exchange rates during the three months ended March 31, 2026.
Investment Activity
During the first quarter of 2026, Digital Realty acquired the following:
As previously announced, during the quarter, Digital Realty acquired the following:
Also previously disclosed, during the first quarter of 2026 Digital Realty entered into an agreement, to acquire TelcoHub 1, an operational 1.5-megawatt data center that is one of Malaysia's leading connectivity hubs, and an adjacent land parcel that can support the development of up to 14 megawatts of IT capacity. These transactions are expected to close in the first half of 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Subsequent to quarter end, Digital Realty acquired a 15-megawatt data center development in Cyberjaya, Malaysia, located near TelcoHub 1, for approximately $117 million. This facility is unleased, with initial IT capacity expected to deliver in the second half of 2026 to support a connected campus.
During the first quarter, Digital Realty sold a non-core data center in the Boston metro area for gross proceeds of approximately $6.4 million.
Subsequent to quarter end, Digital Realty also closed on the sale of a non-core asset in the Atlanta metro area for $24 million.
Balance Sheet
Digital Realty had approximately $18.0 billion of total debt outstanding as of March 31, 2026, comprised of $17.2 billion of unsecured debt and approximately $0.8 billion of secured debt and other debt. At the end of the first quarter of 2026, net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA was 4.7x, debt-plus-preferred-to-total enterprise value was 22.7% and fixed charge coverage was 4.9x.
Since December 31, 2025, the company sold 7.3 million shares of common stock under its At-The-Market (ATM) equity issuance program at a weighted average price of $179.30 per share, for net proceeds of approximately $1.3 billion.
2026 Outlook
Digital Realty raised its 2026 Core FFO per share outlook to $8.00 - $8.10 and its 2026 Constant-Currency Core FFO per share outlook to $7.95 - $8.05. The assumptions underlying the outlook are summarized in the following table.
Note: The company does not provide a reconciliation for non-GAAP estimates on a forward-looking basis, where it is unable to provide a meaningful or accurate calculation or estimation of reconciling items, and the information is not available without unreasonable effort. Please see Non-GAAP Financial Measures in this document for further discussion.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
This document contains non-GAAP financial measures, including FFO, Core FFO, Constant Currency Core FFO, Adjusted FFO, Net Operating Income (NOI), “Same-Capital” Cash NOI and Adjusted EBITDA. A reconciliation from U.S. GAAP net income available to common stockholders to FFO, a reconciliation from FFO to Core FFO, a reconciliation from Core FFO to Adjusted FFO, a reconciliation from NOI to Cash NOI, and definitions of FFO, Core FFO, Constant Currency Core FFO, Adjusted FFO, NOI and “Same-Capital” Cash NOI are included as an attachment to this document. A reconciliation from U.S. GAAP net income available to common stockholders to Adjusted EBITDA, a definition of Adjusted EBITDA and definitions of net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA, debt-plus-preferred-to-total enterprise value, cash NOI, and fixed charge coverage ratio are included as an attachment to this document.
The company does not provide a reconciliation for non-GAAP estimates on a forward-looking basis, where it is unable to provide a meaningful or accurate calculation or estimation of reconciling items and the information is not available without unreasonable effort. This is due to the inherent difficulty of forecasting the timing and/or amount of various items that would impact net income attributable to common stockholders per diluted share, which is the most directly comparable forward-looking GAAP financial measure. This includes, for example, external growth factors, such as dispositions, and balance sheet items such as debt issuances, that have not yet occurred, are out of the company's control and/or cannot be reasonably predicted. For the same reasons, the company is unable to address the probable significance of the unavailable information. Forward-looking non-GAAP financial measures provided without the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures may vary materially from the corresponding GAAP financial measures.
Investor Conference Call
Prior to Digital Realty’s investor conference call at 5:00 p.m. ET / 4:00 p.m. CT on April 23, 2026, a presentation will be posted to the Investors section of the company’s website at https://investor.digitalrealty.com. The presentation is designed to accompany the discussion of the company’s first quarter 2026 financial results and operating performance. The conference call will feature President & Chief Executive Officer Andy Power and Chief Financial Officer Matt Mercier.
A live webcast of the call will be available on the Investors section of Digital Realty’s website at https://investor.digitalrealty.com. The webcast will be archived for one year and the replay will be available shortly after the conclusion of the live event.
About Digital Realty
Digital Realty brings companies and data together by delivering the full spectrum of data center, colocation and interconnection solutions. PlatformDIGITAL®, the company’s global data center platform, provides customers with a secure data meeting place and a proven Pervasive Datacenter Architecture (PDx®) solution methodology for powering innovation, from cloud and digital transformation to emerging technologies like artificial intelligence (AI), and efficiently managing Data Gravity challenges. Digital Realty gives its customers access to the connected data communities that matter to them with a global data center footprint of 300+ facilities in 55+ metros across 30+ countries on six continents. To learn more about Digital Realty, please visit digitalrealty.com or follow us on LinkedIn and X.
Contact Information
Matt Mercier
Chief Financial Officer
Digital Realty
Jordan Sadler / Jim Huseby
Investor Relations
Digital Realty
(737) 281-0101
Definitions
Funds From Operations (FFO):
We calculate funds from operations, or FFO, in accordance with the standards established by the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (Nareit) in the Nareit Funds From Operations White Paper - 2018 Restatement. FFO is a non-GAAP financial measure and represents net income (loss) available to common stockholders (computed in accordance with GAAP), excluding gain (loss) from the disposition of real estate assets, provision for impairment, real estate related depreciation and amortization (excluding amortization of deferred financing costs), our share of unconsolidated JV real estate related depreciation & amortization, net income attributable to noncontrolling interests in operating partnership and reconciling items related to noncontrolling interests. Management uses FFO as a supplemental performance measure because, in excluding real estate related depreciation and amortization and gains and losses from property dispositions and after adjustments for unconsolidated partnerships and joint ventures, it provides a performance measure that, when compared year over year, captures trends in occupancy rates, rental rates and operating costs. We also believe that, as a widely recognized measure of the performance of REITs, FFO will be used by investors as a basis to compare our operating performance with that of other REITs. However, because FFO excludes depreciation and amortization and captures neither the changes in the value of our data centers that result from use or market conditions, nor the level of capital expenditures and capitalized leasing commissions necessary to maintain the operating performance of our data centers, all of which have real economic effect and could materially impact our financial condition and results from operations, the utility of FFO as a measure of our performance is limited. Other REITs may not calculate FFO in accordance with the Nareit definition and, accordingly, our FFO may not be comparable to other REITs’ FFO. FFO should be considered only as a supplement to net income computed in accordance with GAAP as a measure of our performance.
Core Funds from Operations (Core FFO):
We present core funds from operations, or Core FFO, as a supplemental operating measure because, in excluding certain items that do not reflect core revenue or expense streams, it provides a performance measure that, when compared year over year, captures trends in our core business operating performance. We calculate Core FFO by adding to or subtracting from FFO (i) other non-core revenue adjustments, (ii) transaction and integration expenses, (iii) gain (loss) on debt extinguishment and modifications, (iv) gain on / issuance costs associated with redeemed preferred stock, (v) severance, equity acceleration and legal expenses, (vi) gain/loss on FX and derivatives revaluation, and (vii) other non-core expense adjustments. Because certain of these adjustments have a real economic impact on our financial condition and results from operations, the utility of Core FFO as a measure of our performance is limited. Other REITs may calculate Core FFO differently than we do and accordingly, our Core FFO may not be comparable to other REITs’ Core FFO. Core FFO should be considered only as a supplement to net income computed in accordance with GAAP as a measure of our performance.
Adjusted Funds from Operations (AFFO):
We present adjusted funds from operations, or AFFO, as a supplemental operating measure because, when compared year over year, it assesses our ability to fund dividend and distribution requirements from our operating activities. We also believe that, as a widely recognized measure of the operations of REITs, AFFO will be used by investors as a basis to assess our ability to fund dividend payments in comparison to other REITs, including on a per share and unit basis. We calculate AFFO by adding to or subtracting from Core FFO (i) non-real estate depreciation, (ii) amortization of deferred financing costs, (iii) amortization of debt discount/premium, (iv) non-cash stock-based compensation expense, (v) straight-line rental revenue, (vi) straight-line rental expense, (vii) above- and below-market rent amortization, (viii) deferred tax expense / (benefit), (ix) leasing compensation and internal lease commissions, and (x) recurring capital expenditures. Other REITs may calculate AFFO differently than we do and, accordingly, our AFFO may not be comparable to other REITs’ AFFO. AFFO should be considered only as a supplement to net income computed in accordance with GAAP as a measure of our performance.
EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA:
We believe that earnings before interest expense, gain (loss) on debt extinguishment and modifications, income tax expense (benefit), and depreciation and amortization, or EBITDA, and Adjusted EBITDA (as defined below), are useful supplemental performance measures because they allow investors to view our performance without the impact of non-cash depreciation and amortization or the cost of debt and, with respect to Adjusted EBITDA, (i) unconsolidated entities real estate related depreciation & amortization, (ii) unconsolidated entities interest expense and tax expense, (iii) severance, equity acceleration and legal expenses, (iv) transaction and integration expenses, (v) gain (loss) on sale / deconsolidation, (vi) provision for impairment, (vii) other non-core adjustments, net, (viii) noncontrolling interests, (ix) preferred stock dividends, and (x) gain on / issuance costs associated with redeemed preferred stock. In addition, we believe EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are frequently used by securities analysts, investors, and other interested parties in the evaluation of REITs. Because EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are calculated before recurring cash charges including interest expense and income taxes, exclude capitalized costs, such as leasing commissions, and are not adjusted for capital expenditures or other recurring cash requirements of our business, their utility as a measure of our performance is limited. Other REITs may calculate EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA differently than we do and, accordingly, our EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to other REITs’ EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA. Accordingly, EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA should be considered only as supplements to net income computed in accordance with GAAP as a measure of our financial performance.
Net Operating Income (NOI) and Cash NOI:
Net operating income, or NOI, represents rental revenue, tenant reimbursement revenue and interconnection revenue less utilities expense, rental property operating expenses, property taxes and insurance expenses (as reflected in the statement of operations). NOI is commonly used by stockholders, company management and industry analysts as a measurement of operating performance of the company’s rental portfolio. Cash NOI is NOI less straight-line rents and above- and below-market rent amortization. Cash NOI is commonly used by stockholders, company management and industry analysts as a measure of property operating performance on a cash basis. Same-Capital Cash NOI represents data centers owned as of December 31, 2024 with less than 5% of total rentable square feet under development and excludes data centers that were undergoing, or were expected to undergo, development activities in 2025-2026, data centers classified as held for sale and contribution, and data centers sold or contributed to joint ventures for all periods presented (prior period numbers adjusted to reflect current same-capital pool). However, because NOI and cash NOI exclude depreciation and amortization and capture neither the changes in the value of our data centers that result from use or market conditions, nor the level of capital expenditures and capitalized leasing commissions necessary to maintain the operating performance of our data centers, all of which have real economic effect and could materially impact our results from operations, the utility of NOI and cash NOI as measures of our performance is limited. Other REITs may calculate NOI and cash NOI differently than we do and, accordingly, our NOI and cash NOI may not be comparable to other REITs’ NOI and cash NOI. NOI and cash NOI should be considered only as supplements to net income computed in accordance with GAAP as measures of our performance.
Additional Definitions
GAAP refers to United States generally accepted accounting principles.
Net debt-to-Adjusted EBITDA ratio is calculated as total debt at balance sheet carrying value, plus finance lease obligations, plus Digital Realty’s pro rata share of unconsolidated entities debt, less cash and cash equivalents (including Digital Realty’s pro rata share of unconsolidated entities cash) divided by the product of Adjusted EBITDA (including Digital Realty’s pro rata share of unconsolidated entities EBITDA), multiplied by four.
Debt-plus-preferred-to-total enterprise value is total debt plus preferred stock divided by total debt plus the liquidation value of preferred stock and the market value of outstanding Digital Realty Trust, Inc. common stock and Digital Realty Trust, L.P. units, assuming the redemption of Digital Realty Trust, L.P. units for shares of Digital Realty Trust, Inc. common stock.
Fixed charge coverage ratio is Adjusted EBITDA divided by the sum of GAAP interest expense, capitalized interest and preferred stock dividends. For the quarter ended March 31, 2026, GAAP interest expense was $116 million, capitalized interest was $36 million and preferred stock dividends were $10 million.
This document contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws, which are based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially. Such forward-looking statements include statements relating to: our economic outlook, our expected investment and expansion activity, anticipated continued demand for our products and service, our liquidity, our joint ventures, supply and demand for data center and colocation capacity, our acquisition and disposition activity, pricing and net effective leasing economics, market dynamics and data center fundamentals, our strategic priorities, our product offerings, available inventory, rent from leases that have been signed but have not yet commenced and other contracted rent to be received in future periods, rental rates on future leases, lag between signing and commencement, cap rates and yields, investment activity, the company’s FFO, Core FFO, constant currency Core FFO, adjusted FFO, and net income, 2026 outlook and underlying assumptions, information related to trends, our strategy and plans, leasing expectations, weighted average lease terms, the exercise of lease extensions, lease expirations, debt maturities, annualized rent at expiration of leases, the effect new leases and increases in rental rates will have on our rental revenue, our credit ratings, construction and development activity and plans, projected construction costs, estimated yields on investment, expected occupancy, expected square footage and IT load capacity upon completion of development projects, backlog NOI, NAV components, and other forward-looking financial data. Such statements are based on management’s beliefs and assumptions made based on information currently available to management. Such statements are subject to risks, uncertainties and assumptions and are not guarantees of future performance and may be affected by known and unknown risks, trends, uncertainties, and factors that are beyond our control. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, estimated, or projected. Some of the risks and uncertainties that may cause our actual results, performance, or achievements to differ materially from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements include, among others, the following:
The risks included here are not exhaustive, and additional factors could adversely affect our business and financial performance. Several additional material risks are discussed in our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, and other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Those risks continue to be relevant to our performance and financial condition. Moreover, we operate in a competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risk factors emerge from time to time and it is not possible for management to predict all such risk factors, nor can it assess the impact of all such risk factors on the business or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. We expressly disclaim any responsibility to update forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Digital Realty, Digital Realty Trust, the Digital Realty logo, Interxion, Turn-Key Flex, Powered Base Building, ServiceFabric, AnyScale Colo, Pervasive Data Center Architecture, PlatformDIGITAL, PDx, Data Gravity Index and Data Gravity Index DGx are registered trademarks and service marks of Digital Realty Trust, Inc. in the United States and/or other countries. All other names, trademarks and service marks are the property of their respective owners.