Why Tanger Factory Outlet Centers Plummeted 58% in March

Shares of outlet center-focused real estate investment trust (REIT) Tanger Factory Outlet Centers (NYSE: SKT) declined a massive 58% in March according to data from S&P Global Market Intelligence. The broader market fell about 13% and the average REIT, as measured by Vanguard Real Estate ETF, lost about 20%, so Tanger had a really, really bad month. The main reason was COVID-19, but the story is actually bigger than it may at first seem.

Tanger owns a collection of factory outlet centers, as its full name implies. As the coronavirus began to spread through the United States, the government, at various levels, began to ask people to practice social distancing. That included calls, or more stringent orders, for all nonessential businesses to shut down or have employees work from home. There's no working from home for the retail stores that operate in Tanger's centers, so its malls essentially stopped operating. 

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Source Fool.com