Apartment M&A • Retail Rebound • REIT Dividend Hikes

February 16, 2022 | Hoya Capital

Apartment M&A • Retail Rebound • REIT Dividend Hikes Real Estate Daily Recap Feb 16 Written By U.S. equity markets were mixed Wednesday as ongoing concerns over the Russia/Ukraine geopolitical tensions were offset by relief that Federal Reserve officials appeared less-hawkish than feared per their January meeting minutes. Pushing their week-to-date gains to 1.4%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.1% today while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 finished fractionally lower. The Small-Cap 600 and Mid-Cap 400 were each higher by 0.3%.

Retail sales surged nearly 4% in January - reflecting the combination of a resilient consumer and the effects of soaring inflation. Spending on home improvement and e-commerce drove the gains. Preferred Apartments (APTS) soared 11% today after announcing that it will be acquired by Blackstone Real Estate Income Trust for $25.00 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $5.8 billion. A trio of REITs hiked their dividends over the last 24 hours: ExtraSpace Storage (EXR), Acadia Realty (AKR), and Plymouth Industrial (PLYM).

We've now seen 21 REITs hike their dividend this year following a record 130 dividend hikes in 2021. Income Builder Daily Recap We recently launched Hoya Capital Income Builder - a premier income-focused investment research service through Seeking Alpha Marketplace - that will be the new exclusive home of all of Hoya Capital's investment research. Income Builder focuses on real income-producing asset classes that offer the opportunity for diversification, monthly income, capital appreciation, and inflation hedging.

If you're not already on board, give us a try with a completely risk-free two-week trial and take a look around. U.S. equity markets were mixed Wednesday as ongoing concerns over the Russia/Ukraine geopolitical tensions were offset by relief that Federal Reserve officials appeared less hawkish than feared per their January meeting minutes. Pushing their week-to-date gains to 1.4%, the S&P 500 advanced 0.1% today while the tech-heavy Nasdaq 100 finished fractionally lower.

The Small-Cap 600 and Mid-Cap 400 were each ...