Topic: How To Invest

H&R REIT $20.96 – Toronto symbol HR.UN

H&R REIT $20.96 (Toronto symbol HR.UN; Units outstanding: 268.3 million; Market cap: $5.6 billion; TSINetwork Rating: Extra Risk; Dividend yield: 6.4%; www.hr-reit.com) owns stakes in 41 office buildings, 112 industrial properties and 165 shopping malls across Canada. The trust has a 98.7% occupancy rate.

In March 2013, H&R finished building The Bow, a $1.33-billion, two-million-square-foot office complex in Calgary. Encana Corp. has already leased the entire building for 25 years.

H&R recently completed the purchase of 27 properties from Primaris REIT for about $3.1 billion. These assets include the aging 567,000-square-foot Dufferin Mall in Toronto’s west end, which has huge redevelopment potential. As well, eight of the 27 properties will have Target stores as their main tenants by the end of this year.

In the three months ended June 30, 2013, the REIT’s revenue rose 47.3%, to $294.1 million from $199.6 million a year earlier. The gain came mostly from the addition of the Primaris properties.

Cash flow rose 28.8%, to $90.0 million from $72.4 million. However, cash flow per unit fell 8.5%, to $0.43 from $0.47, after H&R issued more units to help fund the Primaris acquisition.

The REIT raised its distribution by 8%, to $0.1125 a month, or $1.35 a year, starting in January 2013. That gives it a 6.4% yield.

H&R REIT is a buy.

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