This Data Dispatch is updated monthly. The analysis includes publicly traded real estate investment trusts covered by S&P Global Market Intelligence that are based in the US or Canada and trade on the NYSE, Nasdaq, NYSE American, Toronto Stock Exchange or TSX Venture Exchange.

Six publicly traded real estate investment trusts based in the US announced hikes to their regular dividend payouts in June, raising the total number of US REITs that have declared higher dividends in the first half to 48.

A Canadian REIT announced an increase in its monthly distribution during the same month, bringing the year-to-date total for Canadian REITs that have announced higher dividends to four, according to data compiled by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

Innovative Industrial Properties leads dividend growth in June

Cannabis-oriented Innovative Industrial Properties Inc. announced the biggest relative dividend hike in June, raising its quarterly cash dividend by 4.4% to $1.90 per share June 14.

On June 3, office landlord Alexandria Real Estate Equities Inc. disclosed it was raising the quarterly cash payout by 2.4% to $1.30 per share. It was followed by single tenant REIT Essential Properties Realty Trust Inc., which declared a 1.8% dividend hike to 29 cents per share June 3.

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Three more REITs also declared dividend hikes in June: healthcare-focused Universal Health Realty Income Trust, diversified REIT W. P. Carey Inc. and single tenant-focused Realty Income Corp.

In Canada, multifamily REIT Marwest Apartment REIT announced a 2.0% increase in its regular monthly distribution to 0.13 Canadian cent per unit June 14.

More than half of residential US REITs increased dividends in H1 2024

In the US, REITs that announced dividend hikes during the first half of 2024 account for about 31.4% of the entire REIT industry.

On a sector basis, 11 residential REITs in the US reported dividend increases thus far in 2024, or 57.9% of the entire residential REIT segment, the highest percentage of any property sector.

In terms of the proportion of dividend hikes relative to the sector's total, industrial REITs came in second at 50.0%, accounting for six REITs announcing dividend hikes year to date. The retail segment followed with 34.6% of REITs in the sector boosting their dividends so far this year.

Of the four Canadian REITs that declared dividend hikes so far, two came from the retail sector and two from the residential sector.