Health Care REIT Stocks Find Investors' Favor

H ealth care stocks are on the move with many making new highs. And the Federal Reserve last week signaled that interest rate increases are at least a few months off. That combination has been good news for health care REITs. Being in the right sector helps a REIT, and so does the prospect of continued low interest rates.

Two REITs,Medical Properties Trust ( MPW ) andSabra Healthcare ( SBRA ) have formed double-bottom formations. Sabra already has broken out from a 33.74 buy point and is in new high ground. Medical Properties is trading just below a 15.58 buy point.

Medical Properties buys hospitals, rehab centers and other specialty hospitals and leases them back to their established operators. It also finances construction of new or expansion of existing medical facilities. It's been expanding in Europe.

The REIT pays a regular quarterly dividend of 22 cents a share, which works out to a 5.8% annual dividend.

Wall Street expects an 18% increase in funds from operation, the REIT equivalent of earnings, in 2015 and an 8% increase in 2016.

Sabra has a portfolio of 160 real estate medical properties that are leased to operators, including senior housing facilities.

Sabra pays a 39-cent quarterly dividend, which works out to a 4.6% annualized yield. Analysts expect 9% growth this year and 6% next year. FFO rose 8% in the most recent quarter with revenue up 48% from a year ago.

BioMed Realty Trust ( BMR ) owns offices and laboratories that it leases to businesses in the life sciences. Earlier this year, it signed a 15-year lease withIllumina ( ILMN ) for a new 360,000-square-foot campus at Foster City, Calif. BioMed expects to turn the facility over to Illumina in 2017.

The stock corrected 19% in recent weeks, but it recovered much of that decline and is now trading 8% off a high.

The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of The NASDAQ OMX Group, Inc.

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Health Care REIT Stocks Find Investors' Favor

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