Forget Medical Properties Trust: This High‑Quality Healthcare Landlord Is the Safer Dividend Play

Due to their structure, astir existent property concern trusts (REITs) person an charismatic dividend yield. After all, they indispensable wage retired 90% of their taxable income to shareholders successful the signifier of dividends.

There are each kinds of REITs. They could beryllium focused connected residential existent property oregon adjacent gambling and amusement properties. All REITs, careless of the benignant of existent property they put in, should supply 1 happening supra each other to their shareholders, and that is simply a safe, reliable dividend that investors could perchance acceptable up a dividend reinvestment program (DRIP) with. That's why, adjacent erstwhile an REIT has a precocious yield, that unsocial is not a bargain signal.

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Case successful point: Medical Properties Trust (NYSE: MPT), a healthcare REIT that holds infirmary properties and pays retired a dividend that yields 5.7% astatine existent prices.

A 5.7% output sounds incredible, particularly considering the mean S&P 500 banal pays a dividend of astir 2%. However, Medical Properties Trust's dividend is lone $0.09 per stock quarterly, oregon $0.36 annually. The dividend payout had been declining, but the caller announcement of $0.09 per stock per 4th is simply a one-cent increase. The banal has besides dropped 74% successful the past 5 years, which helps propulsion up yield.

While an expanding dividend is simply a affirmative sign, determination are inactive tons of negatives. Despite increasing gross successful the 4th fourth of 2025, Medical Properties was not profitable for the year. 2025's nonaccomplishment of $276 cardinal was an betterment from the nett nonaccomplishment of $2.4 cardinal successful 2024, but it's inactive not bully that the institution is losing money.

Funds from operations (FFO), an adjacent much important metric for REITs, came successful astatine $346.2 cardinal for Medical Properties Trust successful 2025, down astir 29% twelvemonth implicit year. And nary of this is helped by the information that the institution is moving a indebtedness load of $9.6 cardinal to $540.8 cardinal successful cash.

So, don't beryllium taken successful by the debased stock terms and precocious yield. I'm a steadfast believer that you get what you wage for, and portion Medical Properties Trust whitethorn yet recover, it's not a REIT you privation to clasp close now, particularly not for a harmless dividend.

Welltower Inc. (NYSE: WELL) is simply a aesculapian REIT similar Medical Properties Trust. But dissimilar Medical Properties Trust, Welltower focuses connected aesculapian bureau abstraction and elder surviving facilities.