Ron Bohlert, manager of global listings at the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), joined REIT.com for a video interview during REITWise 2015: NAREIT’s Law, Accounting and Finance Conference held in Phoenix.
Bohlert noted that initial public offering (IPO) activity during 2014 was “incredibly successful for the NYSE.” There were a total of 117 IPOs, which raised a total amount of $65 billion. While the Alibaba Group IPO contributed a sizeable portion of that total, “in terms of the number of deals and capital raised, it was still very successful on all fronts,” he said.
Last year saw 11 new publicly traded REITs come to market. Bohlert pointed out that many of these were non-traditional REIT IPOs, such as REIT spin-offs and non-listed REITs going public. At the same time, the IPOs represented a diverse group of sectors, Bohlert said. Bohlert said he anticipates a similar trend for the rest of 2015, noting that five new listings have already occurred so far this year.
“The pipeline looking forward is pretty healthy into 2015. Provided the market cooperates, we could see some really good results again,” he said.
Meanwhile, Bohlert pointed to a number of trends that will be impacting the REIT market more broadly in 2015. Those trends include interest rates, the strength of the U.S. dollar, oil prices and the global political landscape, according to Bohlert.