3 Undervalued REITs Increasing Dividends

Even as profits and dividends grew in 2015, share prices fell for these three high-yield REITs. With future dividend increases still in the cards and profit growth continuing throughout 2016, buying these three safe income stocks is a smart investment.

In 2015, the markets soured on the hotel/lodging REIT subsector. Even as the benchmark Dow Jones U.S. Hotel & Lodging REITs Index dropped by 50% from January 2015 to January 2016, hotel REIT profits continued to grow. The market is starting to see the error of its ways, and lodging REIT share prices are moving higher. Couple these share price gains with the upcoming announcement of dividend increases and these stocks offer compelling total return potential.

The lodging group is the most economically sensitive of the different commercial real estate sectors. When the economy is doing well, higher room demand allows hotels to increase occupancy and room rates. Those higher rates generate additional cash flow that drops right to the bottom line. Since coming out of the 2007-2009 Great Recession, hotel business has been robust and lodging REITs have reported growing profits and significant dividend increases.

Investors in lodging REITs did very well from 2010 through January 2015. Over that period, the U.S. Hotel & Lodging REITs Index gained more than 600%. Then, in January 2015, the market started to believe the run for hotel REITs was over and the sector went through a sell-off lasting one year. But, even as share prices were falling, profits and funds from operations (FFO) per share continued to grow through the full year 2015. My database of 15 hotel/lodging REITs reported an average 18% FFO per share increase in 2015 compared to 2014. Those are pretty good numbers by any measure. Those companies that have provided 2016 guidance are shooting for high single digits to low teens FFO growth this year. With yields averaging around 6%, cash flow and potential dividend growth of 8% to 12% looks very attractive.