Is Federal Realty Investment Trust a Buy?
Quick, which company has a longer streak of annual dividend increases, PepsiCo or Federal Realty Investment Trust (NYSE: FRT)? This is an article about the latter, so you could pretty much guess that answer -- but at 52 years, Federal Realty's dividend record puts it in impressive dividend company. However, is that enough to make this retail-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) a buy today?
Federal Realty has a very specific approach that it has used for decades, but it all boils down to an old real estate maxim: location, location, location. The real estate investment trust only owns 104 properties, which is fairly modest compared to some peers. Moreover, it basically operates in just eight markets. However, its locations are generally in wealthy areas with high barriers to entry for competitors. In other words, it's got assets in markets that retailers want to be in.
Image source: Getty Images
Source Fool.com
