A Modest Investment, Darling

One gathers Duff & Phelps, those paragons of prudent investment, have decided to add a trifle more First Industrial Realty Trust to their portfolio. 735,333 shares, to be precise. A mere $41.04 million, of course – pocket change in these increasingly vulgar times. It brings their total holding to a rather substantial 2,184,408 shares, valued at $125.10 million. One assumes they haven’t entirely run out of things to do with the money.

Apparently, this constitutes 1.42% of their U.S. equity holdings. A significant gesture, or merely a rounding error? One suspects the latter. Their top holdings, for the record, include WELL ($484.38 million), PLD ($402.94 million), EQIX ($366.48 million), DLR ($238.67 million), and VTR ($199.35 million). A veritable pantheon of… well, property. How dreadfully predictable.

Let’s examine the fundamentals, shall we? Revenue for the trailing twelve months is a perfectly respectable $714 million. Net income, a slightly less impressive $236.90 million. And a dividend yield of 3.07%. Not quite enough to fund a decent champagne habit, but adequate, one supposes.

Metric Value
Revenue (TTM) $714 million
Net Income (TTM) $236.90 million
Dividend Yield 3.07%
Price (as of market close 1/31/26) $58.03

First Industrial, one is reliably informed, is a leading U.S. industrial REIT, devoted to the development and acquisition of logistics properties. They claim to own or be developing at least 70.4 million square feet of industrial space. A truly staggering amount of… warehousing. One shudders to think.

Now, what does this all mean for the investor? Frankly, not a great deal. Duff & Phelps isn’t exactly staking its reputation on First Industrial. It isn’t even in their top fifteen holdings. However, they are rather fond of REITs in general, which is… curious. Healthcare, industrial, data centers – a diversified portfolio of bricks and mortar. How terribly… sensible.

The real estate market, as anyone with a functioning brain will tell you, is currently experiencing a spot of bother. Limited supply, sluggish construction, dwindling demand. A perfect storm of mediocrity. First Industrial, predictably, has had a rather dismal quarter, but revenue continues to creep upwards. A minor triumph, perhaps, in the face of overwhelming gloom.

The share price rose a mere 14% in 2025, but momentum has slowed. They’ve recently refinanced some loans – $425 million and another $300 million, to be precise – and opted for interest-only payments. A clever maneuver, of course. It buys them time. Time to… what, exactly? One is not entirely sure.

In conclusion, First Industrial is, if nothing else, a perfectly adequate REIT. If one is determined to invest in industrial real estate, one could certainly do worse. But frankly, one has more pressing engagements. A cocktail, perhaps. Or a bracing walk. Anything to escape the relentless tedium of it all.

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2026-02-01 03:02