Those holding REITs have seen their portfolios lag behind in recent years, with the sector struggling under the weight of rising interest rates. The current economic climate has been particularly harsh on REITs, which are feeling the strain from increased borrowing costs and a shift in investor preference towards safer fixed-income assets.

In recent years, real estate investment trusts (REITs) have underperformed the broader market by a wide margin, primarily due to elevated interest rates. High interest rates exert significant pressure on REIT share prices for several reasons.

Regency Centers Corporation (NASDAQ:REG ) Q2 2024 Earnings Conference Call August 2, 2024 11:00 AM ET Company Participants Christy McElroy - SVP, Capital Markets Lisa Palmer - President and CEO Alan Roth - East Region President and COO Nick Wibbenmeyer - West Region President and CIO Mike Mas - CFO Conference Call Participants Michael Goldsmith - UBS Jeff Spector - Bank of America Merrill Lynch Juan Sanabria - BMO Capital Markets Viktor Fediv - Scotiabank Craig Mailman - Citigroup Samir Khanal - Evercore ISI Dori Kesten - Wells Fargo Ravi Vaidya - Mizuho Securities Ki Bin Kim - Truist Securities Ron Kamdem - Morgan Stanley Floris Van Dijkum - Compass Point Linda Tsai - Jefferies Tayo Okusanya - Deutsche Bank Alec Feygin - Baird Mike Mueller - JPMorgan Operator Greetings, and welcome to Regency Center Corporation's Second Quarter 2024 Earnings Conference Call. At this time all participants are in listen-only mode.

Regency Centers' (REG) second-quarter 2024 results depict healthy leasing activity and improvement in the base rent. However, high interest expense affected the results to some extent.

Regency Centers (REG) came out with quarterly funds from operations (FFO) of $1.06 per share, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.02 per share. This compares to FFO of $1.03 per share a year ago.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Aug. 01, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Regency Centers Corporation (“Regency Centers”, “Regency” or the “Company”) (Nasdaq: REG) today reported financial and operating results for the period ended June 30, 2024 and provided updated 2024 earnings guidance. For the three months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, Net Income Attributable to Common Shareholders was $0.54 per diluted share and $0.51 per diluted share, respectively.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., July 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Regency Centers Corporation (“Regency”) announced today that its Board of Directors (the “Board”) has appointed Gary E. Anderson as its newest member, effective as of August 1, 2024. Mr. Anderson recently retired from Prologis, Inc. (“Prologis”), a real estate investment trust that is a global leader in real estate logistics facility development and operation. With the addition of Mr. Anderson as an independent director, Regency will expand the size of its Board to twelve directors.

Healthy demand for Regency Centers' (REG) shopping centers and diverse tenant base are likely to have benefited the company's Q2 earnings. However, higher interest rates might have ailed.

American consumers' savings and spending patterns, illustrated through charts, showing a shift towards credit card debt and rising delinquency rates. Market rotation towards the real estate sector, with tech stocks facing pressure and small caps outperforming. Celebrating recent investment successes with Agree Realty, Cullen/Frost Bankers, and InvenTrust Properties, while discussing new additions to the buy list.

Strip malls are making a comeback in retail real estate, benefiting companies like Regency Centers. Regency Centers has high-quality grocery-anchored properties, low vacancy rates, and strong financial health, offering growth potential and reliable dividends. Trading below historical valuation, Regency Centers presents a compelling opportunity for long-term investors seeking growth and income in the REIT sector.

Riches-to-riches stories are not as interesting as stories of overcoming hardships. Even companies such as Apple have had failures over the years, making it important to diversify and choose companies carefully when investing. Regency Centers and Rexford Industrial Realty are recommended as strong investment options in the real estate sector.

Haendel St. Juste, analyst at Mizuho, joins CNBC's 'The Exchange' to discuss opportunities in retail REITS, apartment and multi-family rents, and more.