Topic: How To Invest

Dear Pat: I would like your analysis of Partners REIT as a long-term investment prospect. Your insight is always invaluable.

Article Excerpt

Partners REIT, $7.49, symbol PAR.UN on Toronto (Units outstanding: 18.2 million; Market cap: $136.3 million; www.partnersreit.com), owns 22 retail properties in B.C., Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec. In all, these shopping centres contain 1.7 million square feet of leasable space. Partners’ properties include malls and shopping centres that are mostly located in smaller cities, such as London, Ontario, and Selkirk, Manitoba. Its largest tenants include Canadian Tire, Shoppers Drug Mart, Sears, Rona and Metro. Partners completed its purchase of NorRock Realty Finance Corporation earlier this year. NorRock holds a portfolio of mortgage loans and investments connected to Canadian commercial real estate. After it closed the deal, Partners consolidated its units on a one-for-four basis. Recent acquisitions helped push up the trust’s revenue by 64.5% in the three months ended December 31, 2011, to $7.5 million from $4.5 million a year earlier. Earnings rose 18.6%, to $3.1 million from $2.6 million. Earnings per share fell 9.3%, to $0.39 from $0.43, on more units outstanding. Partners’…