Food for thought
Thanksgiving week is often quieter than most work weeks as many Americans use vacation days and/or travel to see family and friends. To recap the most food-centric US holiday from a net lease perspective, let’s map public net lease REIT to Thanksgiving menu items…
Turkey
Traditional, classic, the ‘OG’ of most Thanksgiving meals - Realty Income (NYSE: O). Turkey is the main dish - after all, the others are ‘sides.’ Founded in 1969, this behemoth was moist and tasty in 2025 as the common stock has generated a 14% total return. 15,000 properties aggregate to one big bird. Turkey is consistent, but some say boring and dry on its own. Can Realty continue to evolve at north of an $80 billion enterprise value? As long as there are turkeys to cook/fry/grill, Americans will eat them on Thanksgiving.
Turducken
Turkey, duck, and chicken in one? W.P. Carey (NYSE: WPC) generates $1.5 billion in annualized base rent with 39% from industrial assets, 26% from distribution centers, 22% from retail stores, and 14% from a hodgepodge of properties including education facilities, self storage, lab, R&D, hotels, office, and land. This diversification has benefited shareholders in 2025 via a 29% total return. Year of the snake? More like year of the Turducken.
Gravy
When the turkey is too bland, sometimes a high-octane gravy is what you need. NNN REIT (NYSE: NNN) focused on unrated and sub-IG-rated, national and regional retailers primarily via sale/leaseback transactions. A ‘BBB’ or better from S&P may seem healthy, but gravy provides rent escalations to keep your appetite in check. With a 7% total return in 2025, NNN’s track record is like the American Eater - hard to bet against over the long term.
Stuffing
Take the juices and flavors from Turkey while adding unique herbs, spices, and starch - seems like Agree Realty (NYSE: ADC). Using the investment grade focus of O’s past, ADC has aggressively grown since adding its single tenant acquisition platform in 2010. An 11% year-to-date total return and near-zero bad debt (lost rent) justifies a big serving size of stuffing in 2025.
Mashed potatoes
Wait, potatoes are a vegetable? Despite a focus on lower middle and middle market tenants, often with leverage, Essential Properties Realty Trust (NYSE: EPRT) has generated dessert tasting returns with vegetable consistency. With a portfolio of sale/leaseback acquired assets from Equipment Share, Chicken N Pickle, Crunch Fitness, Super Star Car Wash, and Red Robin Gourmet Burgers, EPRT’s 4% YTD total return is well under the impressive annualized 5-year figure (14%) likely due to fears around an impending credit cycle. However, the proof is in the potatoes since the company’s 2018 IPO - its diversified mash has outperformed.
Brussel sprouts salad
Sensible, thoughtful, and healthy - that feels like a Four Corners Property Trust (NYSE: FCPT) favorite. CEO Lenehan is one of the few net lease REIT executives to use the phrase ‘capital allocation’ multiple times during earnings calls and the firm seems focused on per-share growth (and not just asset growth). FCPT continues adding tenants to its portfolio to diversify away from the initial Brussel Sprout exposure (Darden spin-off); however, equity investors seem impatient with the measured growth as seen by an -8% total return in 2025. Like most things that are good for you, FCPT’s discipline should reward those willing to wait.
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