5 REITs Paying Special Dividends With Upcoming Ex-Dividend Dates

As much as investors love regular dividend payments, it's even more "special" when one of their stocks pays a special dividend, most often at the end of the calendar year. 

Because real estate investment trusts (REITs) are required to pay shareholders 90% or more of taxable income each year, special dividend distributions are often required when a REIT disposes of assets with large gains, which increases the taxable income for that year.

The special dividend benefits shareholders with a larger annual yield and helps the REIT by creating shareholder confidence and loyalty. But keep in mind that the payment of a special dividend will decrease the share price by a similar amount, just as the regular dividend payment does. The share price may rise in the week before the ex-dividend date, so it behooves investors who wish to receive the special dividend to purchase shares as soon as possible.

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Take a look at five REITs that have upcoming ex-dividend dates for special dividend payments in the last week of 2023. 

Park Hotels & Resorts Inc. PK is a Tysons, Virginia-based hotel REIT with 43 hotels (plus two held in receivership) and resorts with over 26,000 rooms in prime U.S. markets with high barriers to entry. Properties in Hawaii account for 36% of its portfolio.

Park was established as an independent company in January 2017 following its spinoff from Hilton Hotels Corp. HLT. In September 2019, Park acquired Chesapeake Lodging Trust to add premium-brand hotels and resorts in prime markets such as Miami, Boston, Los Angeles and San Francisco.

On Dec. 1, Park Hotels declared a regular quarterly dividend of $0.15 and a top-off dividend of $0.78, along with a previously announced $0.77 special cash dividend to be paid on Jan. 16 to shareholders of record on Dec. 29. The ex-dividend date for all three payments is Dec. 28, and Park Hotels shareholders will receive three dividend payments on Jan. 16.

Host Hotels & Resorts Inc. HST is a Bethesda, Maryland-based lodging REIT with 77 hotels containing 42,000 rooms in large markets across the U.S. Host Hotels is the only lodging REIT in the S&P 500 and has been in the index since 2007. Its hotel brands include Marriott, Hyatt, Four Seasons and Hilton.

Host Hotels shareholders will receive two rewards in January. On Dec. 15, Host Hotels & Resorts announced an 11% increase in its fourth-quarter dividend from $0.18 to $0.20 per share and a special dividend of $0.25 per share. The dividends are payable on Jan. 16 to shareholders of record on Dec. 29. The ex-dividend date for both payments is Dec. 28. The dividend hike and special dividend increase the annual yield from 3.7% to 5.45%.

Rayonier Inc. RYN is a Yulee, Florida-based specialty REIT that invests in timberland in the U.S. and New Zealand. At the end of the third quarter, Rayonier owned long-term agreements on 2.8 million acres of timberland. Rayonier was established in 1926.

On Dec. 18, Rayonier announced a one-time special cash dividend of $0.20 per common share, payable on Jan. 12 to shareholders of record on Dec. 29. The special dividend is the result of Rayonier's disposition of 55,000 acres of timberland in Oregon in the fourth quarter.

SITE Centers Corp. SITC is a Beachwood, Ohio-based retail REIT with 106 wholly owned shopping centers, 65% of which are anchored by grocery stores or high-quality discounters in affluent areas of the U.S. Its third-quarter lease rate was 94.4%. In October, SITE Centers announced it would spin off 61 convenience sector properties into a separate REIT called Curbline Properties. The spinoff is expected to take one full year, and Curbline is slated to start with a net cash position and no debt.

On Dec. 13, SITE Centers declared a special dividend of $0.16 per share, payable on Jan. 12 to shareholders of record on Dec. 27, with an ex-dividend date on Dec. 26. The special dividend is from the sale of about 15% of SITE Centers' asset base this year. 

Farmland Partners Inc. FPI is a Denver-based, internally managed specialty REIT that invests in farmland and originates loans to farmers that are secured by farm real estate. Farmland Partners is the No. 1 farmland REIT by total acreage, owning or managing over 300 farms totaling 178,216 acres in 20 states. Its properties produce 26 crops and have over 100 tenants. Farmland also owns properties in Ohio leased by four agriculture equipment dealerships.  

On Dec. 12, Farmland Partners announced a special dividend of $0.21 per share, payable on Jan. 12 to shareholders of record on Dec. 29. The ex-dividend date is Dec. 28. The special dividend is because of the sale of 35 farms in 2023 for $71.1 million with an aggregate gain of $10.3 million. The special dividend is on top of the regular $0.06 per share quarterly dividend payable on Jan. 16 to shareholders of record on Jan. 2, with an ex-dividend date of Dec. 29.

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