Federal Realty Investment Trust (FRT) will raise its quarterly dividend by 1.0 percent to $1.06 per share in 2020. Last year the company hiked its dividend by 2.9 percent to $1.05 per share, marking 52 consecutive years of dividend increases.
 

The next common dividend will be payable on October 15, 2020, to common shareholders of record on September 22, 2020. A new annual rate of $4.24 per share yields 5.2% at a stock price of $80.
 

Federal Realty announced the dividend hike in a press release dated August 5, 2020. "We remain confident in our ability to weather this pandemic and come out on the other side an even stronger and further differentiated company," said Donald C. Wood, President and Chief Executive Officer. "Continued positive trends in our collections, our fortress balance sheet built for times like these and, most importantly, the continued desirability of our locations, as evidenced by current tenant discussions, gave us the confidence this quarter to increase our dividend for the 53rd year, an industry record and a coveted aspect of Federal Realty's history."
 

In line with other retail focused REITs, including Simon Property, the stock price of Federal Realty has dropped sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic with a year-to-date loss of almost 38 percent. The company pays approximately $321 million in dividends to shareholders annually. This last dividend hike is the smallest announced by Federal Realty in more than a decade, with the last double digit increase dating back to 2014, when the company announced a 11.5 percent increase.
 

Federal Realty Investment Trust is an equity real estate investment trust (REIT). The Company specializes in in the ownership, operation and redevelopment of high-quality retail based properties located primarily in major coastal markets from Washington, D.C. to Boston as well as San Francisco and Los Angeles. The company claims it has the longest record of consecutive annual dividend increases in the REIT sector. Federal Realty Investment Trust is a Dividend Aristocrat and has paid a dividend to shareholders every year since at least 1962.