TRADE ALERT - Core Portfolio April 2026 (New Investment)

Apr 10, 2026

∙ Paid

Over the past year, we have had a few setbacks in our portfolio.

Most notably, RCI Hospitality (RICK) had a legal case filed against it, leading to sharp losses, and Alexandria Real Estate (ARE)’s fundamentals greatly deteriorated as a result of the healthcare policy chaos.

But in the midst of this, it is easy to overlook that we have also had our fair share of winners, and Whitestone REIT (WSR) is a great example of that.

We first invested in the REIT in 2021, after selling its close peer, Brixmor Property Group (BRX), for an 87% return, and noting that WSR had become more opportunistic.

We then had the chance to repeatedly interview the company’s CEO for High Yield Landlord, which gave us the confidence to hold on to it through periods of intense volatility and gradually accumulated a larger position.

We also speculated that WSR could potentially become a buyout target as it owned the best portfolio in its group, and yet, traded at one of the lowest valuations relative to its net asset value.

That’s exactly what has happened. Just now, WSR announced that it has agreed to a $1.7 billion buyout from the private equity giant Ares (ARES).

This closes our investment in WSR.

Our average cost basis is $8.8 and we are today selling it at $18.92, just shy of the acquisition price of $19. We also earned significant dividend income along the way.

This is a great example of what we ideally aim to achieve at High Yield Landlord. We look for opportunities to acquire high-quality real estate at a steep discount via the public REIT market, often due to some sort of near-term concerns, and then look for potential catalysts to unlock this hidden value.

WSR worked out great, and we are especially happy about it, given that it has been one of our most heavily covered investments here at High Yield Landlord, with a total of 7 management interviews since we invested in the stock.

Now, what are we doing with the proceeds of this sale?

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