RioCan moves beyond malls to cut your risk

Article Excerpt

RioCan cut its distributions as retail lockdowns in the key Ontario market hurt rental revenue. However, the REIT’s new developments will cut its exposure to retailers, which should push your units higher in the next few years. RIOCAN REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST $20 remains a buy. This REIT (Toronto symbol REI.UN; Aggressive Growth Portfolio, Manufacturing & Industry sector; Units outstanding: 317.7 million; Market cap: $6.4 billion; Price-to-sales ratio: 5.5; Distribution yield: 4.8%; TSINetwork Rating: Average; www.riocan.com) owns all or part of 223 shopping centres and other properties across Canada, with 38.3 million square feet of gross leasable space. It also has 14 projects under development. In the past few years, RioCan shifted its focus away from suburban Big Box malls to smaller properties in six main urban markets: Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. Those cities now supply 90% of its rental revenue. The Greater Toronto Area, alone, accounts for 51.3% of its rental revenue. RioCan also continues to cut its reliance on retailers, which…