Self-Storage REITs Declare First-Quarter 2015 Dividends

Three of the four publicly traded U.S.-based self-storage real estate investment trusts (REITs)—CubeSmart, Extra Space Storage Inc. and Public Storage Inc.—have declared dividends for the first quarter of 2015.

CubeSmart

The board of trustees for CubeSmart declared a dividend of $0.16 per common share for the period ending March 31. The dividend marks a 23 percent increase compared to the $0.13 dividend issued for each of the previous four quarters. It’s payable on April 15 to common shareholders of record on April 1.

The board also declared a quarterly dividend of $0.484375 for the 7.75 percent Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Shares payable on April 15 to holders of record on April 1.

CubeSmart recently released its fourth-quarter 2014 financial statement, reporting funds from operations (FFO) per share of $0.28, a 21.7 percent year-over-year increase. Same-store net operating income (NOI) at its 346 facilities grew 8.6 percent year over year. The company attributed this to 6.6 percent growth in revenue and a 2.3 percent increase in property operating expenses.

CubeSmart owns or manages 602 self-storage facilities across the United States and operates the CubeSmart Network, which consists of more than 800 additional self-storage facilities.

Extra Space

The board of directors for Extra Space announced a quarterly dividend of $0.47 per share on the company's common stock for the first quarter. This matches the dividend issued for the previous quarter. The dividend is payable on March 31 to stockholders of record at the close of business on March 16.

The REIT recently reported a same-store revenue increase of 7.3 percent for the fourth quarter in 2014, as well as an NOI gain of 9.5 percent compared to the same period in 2013. FFO was 62 cents per diluted share, resulting in 19.3 percent growth year over year.

Headquartered in Salt Lake City, Extra Space owns or operates 1,088 self-storage properties in 35 states; Washington, D.C.; and Puerto Rico. The company’s properties comprise approximately 725,000 units and 80.4 million square feet of rentable space.

Public Storage

Public Storage issued a quarterly dividend of $1.40 per common share, which matches the dividend issued for the previous four quarters. The dividend is payable on March 31 to stockholders of record on March 16.

The company previously announced revenue for same-store facilities increased 5.6 percent, or $24.9 million, in the fourth quarter, as compared to the same period in 2013. Cost of operations for same-store facilities increased by 1.6 percent, or $1.7 million, year over year. FFO was $2.17 per diluted common share in the four quarter, compared to $2.13 for the same period the previous year. NOI increased $41.3 million during the quarter compared to the same period in 2013, including $23.2 million for same-store facilities.

Based in Glendale, Calif., Public Storage has interests in 2,250 self-storage facilities in 38 states, with approximately 146 million net rentable square feet. Operating under the Shurgard brand name, the company also has 193 facilities in seven European countries, with approximately 10 million net rentable square feet.