Commercial Real Estate Finance

Posts Tagged ‘NASDAQ’

The fact that World Wrestling Entertainment (NYSE: WWE) is a publicly traded company suggests we should never be surprised when a firm, no matter how obscure or unusual, becomes a public entity.

So it shouldn’t be too much of a shock when something as traditional and salt-of-the-earth as growing lettuce receives its own trading symbol. At the end of January, that’s exactly what happened: Gladstone Land (LAND), a company that acquires and rents out agricultural real estate, completed a $50 million IPO on the NASDAQ. What I find surprising, however, is the fact that Gladstone Land intends on converting to REIT status.

To be sure, there are already niche sectors within the REIT industry–timber, cell phone towers, and one day, perhaps, even solar energy–but a firm focused on farmland real estate (and related facilities) is a REIT type I’ve never heard of. It makes sense, though. As America’s agriculture business becomes increasingly consolidated, we can expect farmland tenants to offer greater stability through their sheer size, and because of this real estate’s function, it can feasibly withstand economic contraction better than many other asset types. Read the rest of this entry »

What does the future hold? If you knew with 100% certainty, your plans would be bombproof. You would have no need for earnings forecasts or market predictions. You’d never have to guess at anything. You’d have no need for dreams or what-if scenarios. Well, fortunately for all involved, that is not the case. We humans will always peer dimly into the future through dreams, predictions, forecasts and trends. And always be surprised and amazed by how the future actually turns out.

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So, do you know the subtitle to the novel “Frankenstein” by Mary Shelly?  I didn’t.  Turns out it’s: “The Modern Prometheus”.  This is, of course, a reference to the consequences of hubris – in the sense of human arrogance – and how mankind quite frequently creates its own monsters.  How is this relevant to you?  There are many examples but let’s stick to some recent examples: the BP Gulf spill, the Fukushima reactor, and The Federal Reserve. Read the rest of this entry »