Wednesday, September 14, 2016

Farmland REITs: "Farmland Partners eyes more deals - even after American Farmland purchase" (FPI)

From a July 2014 post:
...Gladstone Land is the other publicly traded vehicle. There a a few private partnerships that let in outsiders.
In February 2011 I noted:
...We've been following this trend for the last three years and have been asked when will it top?
One sign will be when Optima Fund Management brings their American Farmland Company public, still a few years away....
Optima have not yet made the move, and have been correct to keep the cash flow and cap gains to themselves but I have a feeling we are getting close....
They did the IPO on October 19, 2015.

From Agrimoney:
Farmland Partners forecast no let up in its pace of farm acquisition, even after completing the acquisition of rival American Farmland Company to create a "coast-to-coast" business worth more than $850m.
Paul Pittman, the Farmland Partners chief executive, said that the group would "continue to be acquisitive as we have been", even as it negotiates on the $200m acquisition of American Farmland in an all-share deal.

"It's essentially business as usual," Mr Pittman said, speaking as the US enters its key autumn period for farm deals.

"We will continue to acquire and grow the portfolio of Farmland Partners during the fall. This is obviously the active farm transaction season and so we'll continue to make some acquisitions."
Indeed, the extra scale that the company will gain by buying American Farmland "further enhances Farmland Partners' capabilities to pursue… transactions", using both cash and shares, the group said.
'Truly incredible footprint'
Nonetheless, Mr Pittman added that it was "very unlikely" any deals would be worth as much as that of its latest takeover, which is expected to take at $500m the value of Farmland Partners' acquisitions over 12 months when the transaction closes early in 2017.
Farmland Partners, whose portfolio is centred on row crop land in the Midwest and Mississippi Delta, would gain a "truly incredible footprint" by buying American Farmland, whose land is largely of permanent crops such as almonds and citrus, notably in California and Florida.
"You truly do have a coast-to-coast diverse set of assets at this point in time, with many, many different crop types, 25 crop types or even, in fact, a few more across the country," Mr Pittman said.
Citrus vs cotton
Owning such a spread of assets would boost the stability of Farmland Partners' performance, in making it less vulnerable to, say, the downturns that can hurt margins across row crop and grain farms.
"Corn, soybeans and wheat and rice and cotton even, frankly trade together, so a bad time for a corn farmer is also a bad time for a bean farmer, bad time for a wheat farmer etc....MORE
Previously:
Farmland REITS Go Shopping In Florida (FPI; LAND; AFCO)
REITS: "Farmland Partners' land-buying spree tops $50m" (FPI)
"Half of U.S. Farmland Being Eyed by Private Equity"
TIAA-CREF Secures $1.4bn for Second Farmland Vehicle 
Private Equity: Farmland/Ag Fund Seeks $250 Mil., Washington, Maine Pension Funds Say Okay
Real Estate Investment Trusts Down On The Farm: Farmland Partners Looks to Buy $100 Million Worth of Land (FPI; LAND)
Private Equity: Farmland/Ag Fund Seeks $250 Mil., Washington, Maine Pension Funds Say Okay
Real Estate Investment Trusts Down On The Farm: Farmland Partners Looks to Buy $100 Million Worth of Land (FPI; LAND)