CREIT to merge with Choice

Article Excerpt

CANADIAN REIT $50 (Toronto symbol REF.UN; Cyclical-Growth Payer Portfolio; Manufacturing & Industry sector; Units o/s: 73.4 million; Market cap: $3.7 billion; Divd. yield: 3.8%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Above Average; www.creit.ca) has accepted a takeover offer from Choice Properties REIT (Toronto symbol CHP.UN). It’s the real estate subsidiary of Loblaw Companies Ltd. (Toronto symbol L). The merger will create Canada’s largest REIT, with 752 properties comprising 69 million square feet (78% retail, 14% industrial and 8% office). For each unit they hold, Canadian REIT (CREIT) investors can opt for either $53.75 in cash or 4.2835 Choice units. However, Choice has capped the cash portion of the offer. As a result, most CREIT investors will receive $22.50 in cash and 2.4904 Choice Properties units. Choice Properties plans to maintain its current annual distribution rate of $0.74 a unit, which yields a high 6.3%. Canadian REIT is still a buy. buy…