These REITs focus on the best markets

Article Excerpt

While rising interest rates have increased the appeal of bonds and hurt REITs in the past year, Choice Properties and H&R remain excellent ways for investors to earn income. We see both as buys. CHOICE PROPERTIES REIT, $13.29, is a buy. Canada’s biggest REIT (Toronto symbol CHP.UN; Units o/s: 327.9 million; Market cap: $9.7 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Average; Yield: 5.6%; www.choicereit.ca) owns 702 retail, industrial, office space and residential properties with 63.8 million square feet of gross leasable area. George Weston Ltd. (Toronto symbol WN) owns 61.7% of the trust. In 2022, the REIT spent $204.3 million buying new properties. It also sold $876.5 million in properties. Despite that net decline in properties held, Choice’s revenue rose 5.5% in the quarter ended June 30, 2023, to $330.3 million from $313.1 million a year earlier. It finished the quarter with an occupancy rate of 97.4%. Cash flow per share rose 0.8%, to $0.254 from $0.242. Choice is now developing 14 new properties: 9 retail, 3 industrial and 2 residential…