Topic: How To Invest

Stock Pickers Digest Hotline – Friday, November 24, 2017

Article Excerpt

DREAM OFFICE REIT, $21.67, symbol D.UN on Toronto, owns and manages 46 office and retail properties in major Canadian cities comprising 8.5 million square feet. In early 2016, the REIT launched a three-year strategic plan to push up its unit price. That strategy includes selling non-essential properties worth $3.0 billion in order to realize their full market value. Dream has now sold roughly $3.2 billion in properties. It used most of the proceeds to pay down its high-interest debt. It also bought back 21.0 million of its units for $440.0 million. The REIT currently has 82.4 million units outstanding, so the buyback cut the total number by 20.3%. In the three months ended September 30, 2017, Dream’s revenue fell 35.3%, to $110.5 million from $170.7 million a year earlier. Cash flow per share fell 22.6%, to $0.48 from $0.62. The declines reflect the sale of properties, down to 46 by the end of the latest quarter from 148 a year earlier. However, now that…