Latest Top Picks

Stock Opinions by Gail Mifsud

BUY
Dream Office REIT
Will complete the sale of their Eastern portfolio to GE Real Estate in August. What they are left with is about 6 million square feet of Western Canadian assets. The sale gives them low leverage allowing them to continue acquiring assets.
property mngmnt / investment
HOLD
Was under a strategic review process for much of 2007. This does not fit the criteria of REITs for tax purposes. Expect that this will eventually become privatized. Not sure if the distribution is safe.
property mngmnt / investment
STRONG BUY
Has been swept up in the re-pricing of the US REIT market so the price has dropped in half. First class, high quality real estate company. Own 117 million square feet of AAA office space in key markets. Trading at 11X forward FFO multiples, which is well below the historic 13.5.
property mngmnt / investment
HOLD
Their concentration in Ontario has not served them well with the flight of Congo/apartment dwellers to home ownership.
investment companies / funds
BUY
Boardwalk REIT
The largest apartment landlord in Canada. 53% of their rental units are in Alberta. Rent increases will amount to about $63 million. Management has begun to buy back units.
property mngmnt / investment
RISKY
Diversified commercial real estate company and in the secondary market in Quebec. Management has a lot of contacts within the Quebec marketplace. Buying acquisitions on an accretive basis, which will help close the gap on what they are distributing with what they are earning.
income trust
BUY
Focused on grocery-anchored shopping malls. Have about 19 million square feet of peaceable area. About 50% square-footage is in Ontario with the balance in Quebec, Alberta and B.C. Have managed to increase the portfolio size and decrease the leverage on the balance sheet.
property mngmnt / investment
TOP PICK
Quebec-based. Trading at a discount to its NAV. acquired office and industrial assets from Alexis Nihon (AN.UN-T), which doubled the size of the portfolio giving them about 17 million square feet. This has provided them with above average funds from operation growth. Management owns about 20% of the trust units.
investment companies / funds
TOP PICK
Unfairly beaten up over the past several weeks. Trading at an implied yield of close to 8%. Concerns on the $1.1 billion Bow project in Calgary are unmerited.
property mngmnt / investment
TOP PICK
High-quality retail properties in their portfolio. Has historically outperformed and sees no reason why it shouldn't continue to do so.
property mngmnt / investment
TOP PICK
Has a “Strong Buy” rating. Merging with Alexis Nihon (AN.UN-T). Quebec based with 11 million sq ft including 1/3 industrial, 1/3 retail and 1/3 office. Strong management.
investment companies / funds
TOP PICK
Neighbourhood, grocery anchored mall focused. Substantial dividend. Their specialty is the acquisition and development of grocery anchored malls. Principles own about 50% of the outstanding shares.
property mngmnt / investment
TOP PICK
Focused on 100% ownership of US office assets. A value story through and through. “Outperform” rating. Trades at a discount to underlying value.
investment companies / funds
DON'T BUY
Has a “Market Perform” on it. Have had to deal with a strong housing market that pulled people to home ownership. Has hurt occupancy rates. Year to date performance was better than she expected, however, she is expecting a decline in cash flow. Payout ratio is over 100%.
investment companies / funds
DON'T BUY
Has it as a “Market Perform”. Growth rate on their property portfolio is contracting.
property mngmnt / investment
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