Topic: How To Invest

Dividend Advisor Hotline – Friday, February 21, 2025

Article Excerpt

RIOCAN REAL ESTATE INVESTMENT TRUST, $19.41, Toronto symbol REI.UN, is a top pick for 2025. The REIT owns all or part of 178 shopping centres and mixed-use properties with a net leasable area of 32.2 million square feet. Its occupancy rate is a high 98.0%. RioCan cut its monthly distribution by 33.3% to $0.96 a unit (on an annual basis) in February 2021 as retailers shut down due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As the restrictions eased, the trust resumed annual distribution increases. Under that policy, RioCan will increase your monthly distribution by 4.3% with the March 2025 payment. Investors will then receive $0.0965 a unit from $0.0925. The new annual rate of $1.158 yields a solid 6.0%. Meantime, RioCan continues to benefit from its October 2017 strategy to focus on six major urban markets: Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. Those cities now supply 94% of its rental revenue, up from 74% in 2017. As well, the trust’s focus on grocery stores, restaurants and…