Michael Weil, chairman, president, and CEO of American Finance Trust, Inc. (Nasdaq: AFIN), joined Nareit in New York for a video interview at REITweek: 2019 Investor Conference.
During the first quarter, American Finance Trust accessed capital markets for the first time as a listed company. Weil said the biggest challenge of operating in that new environment is introducing the company to investors.
“The portfolio was intentionally built to one day be a public company, so we came with a portfolio that we think is clean, that’s easy to understand, and really fits nicely into the market,” he said.
As for possible acquisitions, Weil said the company is focused on single-tenant, freestanding net lease properties. “We think the service retail sector is holding up very nicely,” and complements e-commerce, he noted.
Weil also said American Finance Trust, as a landlord, is “very excited” by the merger of SunTrust and BB&T.