H&R REIT $18.72 - Toronto symbol HR.UN

H&R REIT $18.72 (Toronto symbol HR.UN; Units outstanding: 279.6 million; Market cap: $5.2 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 7.2%; www.hr-reit.com) owns or has a stake in 517 office buildings, industrial properties and shopping malls in Canada and the U.S. In all, these holdings include 47.2 million square feet of leasable space. In December 2014, Canadian REIT sold part ownership in 101 industrial properties, or a total of 19.5 million square feet, for $731 million. The buyers included the Canadian Public Sector Pension Investment Board. H&R kept a 50% interest in the Canadian properties and a 49.5% stake in the U.S. portfolio. It continues to manage these assets and receives fees for doing so. H&R also held on to full ownership of 14 other industrial properties. The trust will use the proceeds to buy more malls and office buildings in Canada and the U.S. H&R is also using the funds to help pay for the 50% partnership it formed with U.S. real estate firm Tishman Speyer in June 2014. Under the deal, the two companies are building an $875-million upscale apartment complex in Long Island City, New York. Construction is now underway, with completion scheduled for the end of 2017. Meantime, H&R’s revenue slipped 8.1% in the three months ended December 31, 2015, to $296.2 million from $308.6 million a year earlier. That was after it sold less important properties. Cash flow per unit was unchanged at $0.48, and the REIT ended the quarter with a 95.9% occupancy rate. The units trade at 9.8 times H&R’s forecast 2016 cash flow of $1.92 a unit. The trust pays a monthly distribution of $0.1125 a unit, for a 7.2% yield. H&R REIT is a buy.