The winners of NAREIT’s 2015 Investor CARE Awards, which honor excellence in communications and reporting to shareholders, were announced on June 9 in New York at REITWeek 2015: NAREIT’s Investor Forum.
In the large cap Equity REIT category, the Gold Award went to Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Inc. (NYSE:ARE). Boston Properties, Inc. (NYSE: BXP) received the Silver Award, while the Bronze Award went to Camden Property Trust (NYSE:CPT).
Dean Shigenaga, Alexandria’s CFO, accepted the award.
“Alexandria is honored to be the 2015 recipient of the Investor CARE Gold Award and to be recognized by NAREIT as a first-in-class REIT that delivers transparency, quality, and efficient communications and reporting to the investment community,” Shigenaga said. “As a public company, Alexandria prides itself on best-in-class investor relations practices and strives for excellence in communications and financial reporting. With this award, we will continue to pursue the highest standards in these efforts.”
Owen Thomas, CEO of Boston Properties, said being selected for the Silver Investor CARE Award "reflects the importance we place on shareholder relationships and our associated commitment to transparency, detailed reporting and overall investor relations."
Kim Callahan, Camden’s senior vice president of investor relations, accepted the company’s Bronze Award.
“Camden is honored to be recognized by NAREIT again this year. We strive to provide excellent communication and reporting to our shareholders and the investment community,” she said.
Physicians Realty Trust Wins Gold in Small Cap Sector
In the small cap Equity REIT category, Physicians Realty Trust (NYSE: DOC) was awarded Gold, while Armada Hoffler Properties, Inc. (NYSE: AHH) received the Silver Award and QTS Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: QTS) took the Bronze.
John Thomas, president and CEO of Physicians Realty Trust, said that when the company held its initial public offering two years ago, "we knew that to build a lasting company, we needed to create a reputation for full disclosure and transparency with our investors, tenants and bankers."
"Our consistent operating relationship with them builds loyalty during up and down markets. We believe it is simply good business that enhances our overall value," Thomas added.
Jeff Berson, chief investment officer for QTS, accepted the award. "QTS is differentiated in the market by offering a fully integrated technology services platform on top of world class real estate and mega data centers. We understand the obligation that is placed on us when investors entrust us with their capital, and are honored at receiving the Investor CARE Award," Berson said.
The Gold Award for Mortgage REITs went to Starwood Property Trust (NYSE: STWD).
Zachary Tanenbaum, director of investor relations at Starwood, accepted the award.
“At Starwood Property Trust, we believe that consistent communication, responsiveness and ever-improving transparency is key to facilitating an understanding of how we create long-term value for our shareholders. Since our inception, we have focused on enhancing our disclosures, and we intend to continue to do so in the coming years,” he said.
This is the 15th year that NAREIT has given out the awards. The criteria used to choose winners consist of a company’s online presence, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filings and investor relations practices.
The awards are intended to recognize those companies that interact most effectively with their investors online, as well as through written and verbal communication. The awards also highlight companies that provide investors with the most comprehensive, clearly articulated and useful information in the most efficient manner.
The NAREIT CARE Awards are judged by an independent panel of REIT securities analysts and portfolio managers. This year’s judges included: the Chilton REIT team of REIT analyst Blane Cheatham , managing director Bruce Garrison and portfolio manager/analyst Matthew Werner; the Forum Securities team of managing director Sophia Banar and managing director Douglas Funke; the Lazard Asset Management team of vice president Gautam Garg and managing director Jay Leupp; Eden Levinson, senior vice president with Harrison Street Securities, LLC; Keven Lindemann, director of the real estate group at SNL Financial; the Prudential real estate investors team; and the RBC REIT team.