Company Description
CubeSmart (NYSE: CUBE) is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) focused on the ownership and management of self-storage properties across the United States. The company’s properties are designed to provide affordable, easily accessible and, in most locations, climate-controlled storage space for both residential and commercial customers. According to the 2025 Self Storage Almanac, CubeSmart is one of the top three owners and operators of self-storage properties in the U.S.
CubeSmart’s business centers on acquiring, owning, developing and managing self-storage facilities. Its real estate portfolio consists of buildings with enclosed storage areas that customers typically rent on a month-to-month basis. The company derives nearly all of its revenue from rental income generated by tenants using these storage units, as noted in the Polygon description. Over time, CubeSmart has expanded its footprint through consolidated store ownership and a large third-party management platform.
Business model and operations
As a REIT, CubeSmart focuses on income-producing real estate. The company’s consolidated portfolio includes hundreds of owned stores with tens of millions of rentable square feet, as reflected in its quarterly results releases. In addition, CubeSmart operates a sizable third-party management platform, where it manages stores owned by other parties in exchange for management fees. Recent disclosures show this platform includes more than 800 stores totaling over 56 million rentable square feet.
The company reports performance using metrics commonly used in the real estate and self-storage sectors, such as net operating income (NOI), funds from operations (FFO) and FFO, as adjusted. Management uses FFO as a key performance indicator to evaluate store operations, because it adjusts net income for items such as real estate depreciation, amortization and gains or losses from real estate sales. NOI is used to assess the economic productivity of stores by focusing on property-level revenues and operating expenses.
Scale and market position
CubeSmart’s scale is highlighted in multiple company communications. Various 2025 releases state that CubeSmart owns or manages more than 1,500 self-storage properties across the United States. The company also notes, citing the 2025 Self Storage Almanac, that it is one of the top three owners and operators of self-storage properties in the country. A separate news release from Precision Global Corporation describes CubeSmart as the third-largest owner and operator of self-storage facilities in the U.S. and references management of over 1,300 properties nationwide.
The Polygon description indicates that a significant portion of CubeSmart’s portfolio and revenue is concentrated in states such as Florida, Texas, California, New York and Illinois. These states collectively account for the majority of the company’s rentable square footage and revenue, underscoring CubeSmart’s presence in large, diverse markets.
Customer focus and property features
CubeSmart emphasizes a mission to simplify the organizational and logistical challenges created by life events and business needs. Company descriptions in multiple news releases state that this mission is pursued through “innovative solutions, unparalleled service, and genuine care.” The self-storage properties are described as affordable and easily accessible, with climate-controlled space available at most locations. These features are intended to serve a broad mix of residential and commercial customers who require flexible storage options.
The company’s facilities are configured with numerous enclosed storage areas, as described in the Polygon profile, which customers can rent primarily on a month-by-month basis. This short-term rental structure is typical for self-storage and supports customer flexibility for both personal and business storage needs.
Capital structure and financing
CubeSmart finances its operations and growth through a combination of equity and debt. The company’s common shares trade on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CUBE, as confirmed in its Form 8-K filings. These filings also describe the company’s use of unsecured senior notes and an unsecured revolving credit facility.
In an August 2025 Form 8-K, CubeSmart, L.P., the company’s operating partnership, reported the issuance of $450 million in 5.125% senior notes due 2035, fully and unconditionally guaranteed by CubeSmart. The net proceeds were expected to be used to repay outstanding indebtedness under the unsecured revolving credit facility and for working capital and other general corporate purposes, including potential repayment or repurchase of other outstanding indebtedness. The notes are senior unsecured obligations of the operating partnership and are subject to covenants that limit additional debt and secured debt and require certain levels of unencumbered assets.
Quarterly earnings releases also discuss interest expense, average outstanding debt balances and weighted average effective interest rates, reflecting the importance of capital structure and financing costs to CubeSmart’s results.
Growth, development and third-party management
CubeSmart’s disclosures highlight several avenues of growth. The company engages in acquisitions, development of new self-storage properties and expansion of its third-party management platform. For example, in 2025 the company acquired the remaining 80% interest in a 28-store unconsolidated real estate venture, converting it into a wholly owned portfolio. It also maintains agreements with developers for the construction of self-storage properties in high-barrier-to-entry locations, with joint venture development projects in markets such as New York.
The third-party management business is another important component. As of mid-2025, CubeSmart’s third-party management platform included more than 870 stores, and the company added dozens of stores to this platform over the first half of the year. A separate announcement from Precision Global Corporation notes that CubeSmart assumed third-party management of four storage facilities in Texas, illustrating how owners of self-storage assets may partner with CubeSmart for management expertise, systems and marketing infrastructure.
Performance metrics and guidance
CubeSmart’s quarterly releases provide detail on same-store performance, including same-store revenues, operating expenses, NOI and physical occupancy. The same-store pool is defined as a set of properties that have been owned and operated for a sufficient period to allow for meaningful period-to-period comparisons. These properties account for a large majority of the company’s consolidated rentable square footage and property NOI.
The company also provides annual financial outlook ranges for diluted earnings per share and FFO per diluted share, as adjusted. These outlooks incorporate assumptions about same-store revenue and expense growth, acquisition activity, property management fee income, general and administrative expenses and interest and loan amortization expense. The company notes that the impact of potential speculative investment activity is excluded from guidance due to uncertainty regarding timing and terms.
Dividend policy
CubeSmart’s board of trustees regularly declares quarterly dividends on the company’s common shares. Several 2025 announcements describe dividends declared for specific quarters, including an increase in the quarterly dividend to $0.53 per common share for the period ending December 31, 2025. In that release, CubeSmart stated that this represented the 16th consecutive annual increase to its dividend.
These dividend announcements underscore CubeSmart’s use of recurring cash flows from its self-storage portfolio to support regular distributions to shareholders, consistent with its REIT structure.
Regulatory reporting and REIT considerations
CubeSmart files reports with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including Forms 10-K, 10-Q and 8-K. The company’s Form 8-K filings describe material events such as quarterly earnings announcements and the issuance of senior notes. In its non-GAAP financial measures disclosures, CubeSmart explains how it calculates FFO and FFO, as adjusted, and why management and investors may find these measures useful in evaluating operating performance.
The company also discusses risks and uncertainties that could affect its business, including economic conditions in the real estate and self-storage industries, competition from other self-storage operators, availability and cost of capital, interest rate movements, regulatory changes, natural disasters, cybersecurity risks and other factors referenced in its annual report on Form 10-K and subsequent SEC filings.
FAQs about CubeSmart (CUBE)
- What does CubeSmart do?
CubeSmart is a self-administered and self-managed real estate investment trust that owns and manages self-storage properties across the United States. Its properties provide affordable, easily accessible and, in most locations, climate-controlled storage space for residential and commercial customers. - How does CubeSmart generate revenue?
According to the Polygon description, CubeSmart derives nearly all of its revenue from rental income paid by tenants who rent enclosed storage areas in its self-storage facilities, typically on a month-by-month basis. - What is CubeSmart’s market position in the self-storage industry?
Company disclosures citing the 2025 Self Storage Almanac state that CubeSmart is one of the top three owners and operators of self-storage properties in the United States. A separate release from Precision Global Corporation describes CubeSmart as the third-largest owner and operator of self-storage facilities in the U.S. - Where does CubeSmart operate?
CubeSmart states that it owns or manages more than 1,500 self-storage properties across the United States. The Polygon description notes that a majority of the company’s square footage and revenue comes from properties in Florida, Texas, California, New York and Illinois. - What types of customers use CubeSmart’s properties?
Company descriptions indicate that CubeSmart serves both residential and commercial customers. Its self-storage properties are designed to address organizational and logistical challenges arising from life events and business needs. - What is CubeSmart’s mission?
In multiple 2025 news releases, CubeSmart states that its mission is to simplify the organizational and logistical challenges created by life events and business needs through innovative solutions, unparalleled service and genuine care. - How does CubeSmart measure its performance?
CubeSmart highlights funds from operations (FFO), FFO as adjusted and net operating income (NOI) as key performance measures. FFO adjusts net income for real estate depreciation, amortization and certain gains or losses, while NOI focuses on property-level revenues and operating expenses. - What is CubeSmart’s stock symbol and exchange?
Form 8-K filings identify CubeSmart’s common shares, with a par value of $0.01 per share, as trading on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol CUBE. - Does CubeSmart pay dividends?
Yes. Several 2025 press releases describe quarterly dividends declared by CubeSmart’s board of trustees. One release notes that the company’s dividend increase for the period ending December 31, 2025 represented the 16th consecutive annual dividend increase. - What is CubeSmart’s third-party management platform?
CubeSmart manages self-storage properties owned by third parties and earns management fees from these arrangements. Company releases report that this third-party management platform includes hundreds of stores totaling tens of millions of rentable square feet.