Topic: How To Invest

Dividend Advisor Hotline – Friday, December 4, 2020

Article Excerpt

RIOCAN REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST, $17.65, Toronto symbol REI.UN, remains a buy. The REIT owns all or part of 221 shopping centres and other properties across Canada. They include 15 projects under development. In all, RioCan controls 38.4 million square feet of rentable space. Its overall occupancy rate is a high 96.4%. RioCan is now cutting its monthly distribution by 33.3%. Starting with the February 2021 payment, investors will receive $0.08 a unit instead of $0.12. The new annual rate of $0.96 yields 5.4%. CEO Ed Sonshine recently reassured investors that the previous monthly payment of $0.12 a unit was safe. However, that was before the second wave of COVID-19 prompted more shutdowns of retailers in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). In the third quarter of 2020, the GTA supplied 50.8% of RioCan’s rental revenue. While essential businesses like supermarkets, drug stores and banks, continue to operate, other tenants, like movie theatres, gyms, restaurants and hair salons (22% of RioCan’s third quarter rental revenue),…