canadian reit

ALLIED PROPERTIES REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST $29.35 (Toronto symbol AP.UN; Units outstanding: 55.9 million; Market cap: $1.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 4.5%; www.alliedpropertiesreit.com) owns 100 office buildings, mostly in major Canadian cities. These mainly Class I properties contain over 7.8 million square feet of leasable area. Class I refers to 19th- and early-20th-century light industrial buildings that have been converted to office and retail space. They usually feature exposed beams, interior brick and hardwood floors. In 2011, the trust bought 22 properties for $456 million. In the first quarter of 2012, it bought 10 more buildings for $185.2 million....

CANADIAN REIT $38.74 (Toronto symbol REF.UN; Units outstanding: 67.6 million; Market cap: $2.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 3.7%; www.creit.ca) owns over 190 properties, including retail, industrial and office buildings, located across Canada and in the Chicago area. These properties contain over 24 million square feet of leasable area. Its occupancy rate is 94.4%.

In the three months ended December 31, 2011, the real estate investment trust’s revenue rose 8.9%, to $90.0 million from $82.6 million a year earlier. Cash flow per unit rose 6.9%, to $0.62 from $0.58.

The REIT bought $264.5 million of properties in 2011, including its June purchase of two fully leased malls in Mississauga, Ontario, for $174.4 million. In March 2012, it bought 50% of the 310,000- square-foot Altius Centre in Calgary for $89.9 million. In April, it paid $156.0 million for 50% of Calgary Place, a 575,000-square-foot office and retail complex, also in Calgary.

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CANADIAN REIT $38.74 (Toronto symbol REF.UN; Units outstanding: 67.6 million; Market cap: $2.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 3.7%; www.creit.ca) owns over 190 properties, including retail, industrial and office buildings, located across Canada and in the Chicago area. These properties contain over 24 million square feet of leasable area. Its occupancy rate is 94.4%. In the three months ended December 31, 2011, the real estate investment trust’s revenue rose 8.9%, to $90.0 million from $82.6 million a year earlier. Cash flow per unit rose 6.9%, to $0.62 from $0.58. The REIT bought $264.5 million of properties in 2011, including its June purchase of two fully leased malls in Mississauga, Ontario, for $174.4 million. In March 2012, it bought 50% of the 310,000- square-foot Altius Centre in Calgary for $89.9 million. In April, it paid $156.0 million for 50% of Calgary Place, a 575,000-square-foot office and retail complex, also in Calgary....

ISHARES CDN REIT SECTOR INDEX FUND $15.72 (Toronto symbol XRE; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) holds the 13 Canadian real estate investment trusts (REITs) in the S&P/TSX Capped REIT Index. The weight of any one REIT is limited to 25% of the ETF’s value.

iShares CDN REIT’s expenses are just 0.55% of its assets. The fund yields 4.7%.

As mentioned, RioCan REIT is the fund’s largest holding, at 23.9%, followed by H&R REIT (13.1%), Canadian REIT (8.5%), Calloway REIT (8.2%), Dundee REIT (7.0%), Boardwalk REIT (6.9%), Canadian Apartment Properties REIT (6.5%), Primaris Retail REIT (5.8%), Allied Properties REIT (4.4%), Cominar REIT (4.4%), Chartwell Seniors Housing REIT (4.3%), Artis REIT (4.3%) and Extendicare REIT (2.3%).

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RioCan REIT is our #1 safety-conscious pick for 2012. The trust would be a sound addition to the Manufacturing segment of almost any investor’s portfolio. But if you want to hold a range of REITs, you can do so through the iShares CDN REIT Sector Index Fund, an ETF lets you hold 13 in all. And you’ll still have lots of exposure to RioCan, because it’s the ETF’s largest holding. Here’s a closer look: ISHARES CDN REIT SECTOR INDEX FUND $15.72 (Toronto symbol XRE; buy or sell through brokers; ca.ishares.com) holds the 13 Canadian real estate investment trusts (REITs) in the S&P/TSX Capped REIT Index. The weight of any one REIT is limited to 25% of the ETF’s value....

CANADIAN REIT $36.18 (Toronto symbol REF.UN; Units outstanding: 67.3 million; Market cap: $2.4 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 4.0%; www.creit.ca) owns over 160 properties, including retail, industrial and office buildings, located across Canada and in the Chicago area. These properties contain over 24 million square feet of leasable area. Its occupancy rate is 93.7%.

In the three months ended September 30, 2011, the real estate investment trust’s revenue rose 5.5%, to $83.7 million from $79.4 million a year earlier. Cash flow per unit rose 5.3%, to $0.60 from $0.57.

Canadian REIT bought $264.5 million of properties in 2011, including its June 2011 purchase of two fully leased malls in Mississauga, Ontario, for $174.4 million. Tenants include Future Shop, Famous Players, Chapters, Rona and National Sports.

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CANADIAN REIT $36.18 (Toronto symbol REF.UN; Units outstanding: 67.3 million; Market cap: $2.4 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 4.0%; www.creit.ca) owns over 160 properties, including retail, industrial and office buildings, located across Canada and in the Chicago area. These properties contain over 24 million square feet of leasable area. Its occupancy rate is 93.7%. In the three months ended September 30, 2011, the real estate investment trust’s revenue rose 5.5%, to $83.7 million from $79.4 million a year earlier. Cash flow per unit rose 5.3%, to $0.60 from $0.57. Canadian REIT bought $264.5 million of properties in 2011, including its June 2011 purchase of two fully leased malls in Mississauga, Ontario, for $174.4 million. Tenants include Future Shop, Famous Players, Chapters, Rona and National Sports....

CANADIAN REIT $34.99 (Toronto symbol REF.UN; Units outstanding: 67.0 million; Market cap: $2.4 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 4.1%; www.creit.ca) owns over 160 properties, including retail, industrial and office buildings, located across Canada and in the Chicago area. These properties contain over 22 million square feet of leasable area. Its occupancy rate is 93.3%. In the three months ended June 30, 2011, the real estate investment trust’s revenue rose slightly, to $80.3 million from $79.9 million a year earlier. Cash flow per unit rose 1.8%, to $0.58 from $0.57. In June 2011, Canadian REIT bought two fully leased malls in Mississauga, Ontario, for $174.4 million. Tenants include Future Shop, Famous Players, Chapters, Rona and National Sports. Earlier this year, the REIT raised its annual distribution by 2.1%, to $1.44 a unit from $1.41. It now yields 4.1%....

ISHARES CDN REIT SECTOR INDEX FUND $14.20 (Toronto symbol XRE; buy or sell through a broker; ca.ishares.com) holds the 13 Canadian real estate investment trusts (REITs) in the S&P/TSX Capped REIT Index. The weight of any one REIT is limited to 25% of iShares CDN REIT Sector Index Fund’s value. iShares CDN REIT’s expenses are just 0.55% of its assets. RioCan REIT is the fund’s largest holding, at 25.0%, followed by H&R REIT (12.0%), Canadian REIT (8.9%), Calloway REIT (8.6%), Boardwalk REIT (6.9%), Dundee REIT (6.9%), Primaris Retail REIT (6.2%), Canadian Apartment Properties REIT (6.1%), Allied Properties REIT (4.4%), Cominar REIT (4.4%), Chartwell Seniors Housing REIT (4.0%), Artis REIT (3.7%) and Extendicare REIT (2.0%)....

The federal government’s tax on income-trust distributions has now been in effect for a little more than six months, since January 1, 2011. However, Ottawa feels the income-trust business structure is still appropriate for real estate investment trusts (REITs), so it has exempted REITs from the new tax. That’s great news for Canadian income seekers. What’s more, as we predicted in our Canadian Wealth Advisor newsletter, most REITs have moved up in the past year—including our recommendations. That’s because REITs’ high yields have attracted a lot of investor attention as trusts converted to corporations, or cut their distributions in response to the new tax....