The largest casino landlord in the US, VICI Properties (NYSE: VICI), said on Thursday that its quarterly dividend will increase from 39 cents to 41.5 cents per share.
The yearly payment for the owner of Caesars Palace will therefore increase by 6.4% to $1.66 from $1.56 per share. The information was released a day following the previously reported closing of VICI’s acquisition of the real estate of four Canadian gaming sites. Century Casinos (NASDAQ: CNTY), a company located in Colorado, will continue to run those locations.
The trust for investing in real estate (REIT) announced that the dividend would be paid to stockholders of record as of the close of business on September 21, 2023 on October 5, 2023.
The real estate assets of 54 gambling establishments spread across the US and Canada are owned by New York-based VICI, a company that is a part of the S&P 500. The dividend yield on the stock as of today’s closing was 5%, which is 74 basis points more than the yield on 10-year Treasury securities.
VICI Is a Fast-Growing Dividend Story
While dividends are always welcome, this kind of investment is best used over a long period of time, thus consistent payment increase is necessary for investors to get favorable results.
That call is being taken by VICI. The Venetian’s owner upped the dividend today, nearly a year after increasing the payout by 8.4%. This is the REIT’s sixth straight year of dividend growth since it was separated from Caesars Entertainment in 2017.
VICI has grown to become the leading landlord on the Las Vegas Strip through a number of wise purchases. It owns virtually all of the property assets of the MGM Resorts International (NYSE: MGM)-operated Strip venues in addition to the real estate of Caesars Palace and the Venetian. Cosmopolitan and Bellagio are the outliers.
Although more than 40% of the REIT’s rental income comes from the Strip, VICI has a wide geographic presence since it owns gaming properties in 15 states, including Nevada, and Canada.
VICI Dividend Increase Keeps Pace with Competitor
With the announcement of the dividend today, VICI maintains its lead over rival Gaming and Leisure Properties (NASDAQ: GLPI), the only other gaming REIT that is publicly listed.
In addition to a previously announced special dividend, Gaming and Leisure Properties announced its second distribution increase for this year on August 31. Although VICI’s dividend yield is 104 basis points higher than Gaming and Leisure’s, the latter firm has outperformed the former this year.
Although the two REITs are in the same industry, they differ significantly from one another. Market capitalization indicates that VICI is around 2.5 times bigger than its opponent. Comparatively speaking, Gaming and Leisure is far less exposed to the Las Vegas Strip than its rival(Casino landlord VICI Properties increases the dividend by 6.4%.).
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