REIT Winners And Losers: January's Trends Reshaping 2025
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: Feb 06 2025
0mins
Source: Benzinga
REIT Performance Overview: Real estate investment trusts (REITs) saw modest gains at the start of 2025, with the FTSE Nareit All Equity REITs Index rising 1.0% in January, while broader stock indices outperformed, highlighting investor interest in sector performance and income potential.
Top Performing ETFs: Notable ETFs such as iShares Residential and Multisector Real Estate ETF, Vanguard Real Estate ETF, and Invesco S&P 500 Equal Weight Real Estate ETF have shown strong returns over the past year, alongside attractive dividend yields from REITs, making them appealing for income-focused investors.
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Analyst Views on WELL
Wall Street analysts forecast WELL stock price to fall
13 Analyst Rating
12 Buy
1 Hold
0 Sell
Strong Buy
Current: 218.610
Low
182.00
Averages
209.00
High
231.00
Current: 218.610
Low
182.00
Averages
209.00
High
231.00
About WELL
Welltower Inc. is a real estate investment trust, which focuses on rental housing for aging seniors across the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. Its portfolio of 2,500+ seniors and wellness housing communities is positioned at the intersection of housing and hospitality, creating vibrant communities for mature renters and older adults. Its segments include Seniors Housing Operating and Triple-net. Its Housing Operating properties include wellness housing, assisted living communities, independent living, continuing care retirement communities, independent supportive living communities (Canada), care homes with and without nursing (United Kingdom.) and combinations thereof. The Triple-net segment invests in seniors housing and healthcare real estate through acquisition of single tenant properties. Properties acquired are generally leased under triple-net leases and we are not involved in the management of the property.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
- Importance of Technical Analysis: By combining preset technical screens with manual chart analysis, a number of attractive stock patterns have emerged from the real estate sector, even as the 10-year Treasury yield approaches 4.7%, indicating the market may be discounting certain information ahead of time.
- Market Reaction Analysis: Investors continue to buy real estate stocks despite rising rates, which may suggest market expectations for the future or recognition of current valuations, reflecting investor confidence and potential opportunities in the market.
- Insights from Price Action: Price action should remain the primary focus; while the macro backdrop is important, price often provides clues before the story becomes clear, emphasizing the significance of technical analysis in market decision-making.
- Breakout Potential of Welltower: Welltower stock is attempting to break out, with a target price near 239, and while this may not seem dramatically higher from current levels, its broader basing formation indicates potential upside despite the rising interest rate environment.
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- Increased Holdings: In Q1 2026, Cohen & Steers expanded its stake in 28 US real estate investment trusts and added two new REIT investments, reflecting its ongoing confidence in the real estate market.
- NETSTREIT Stake Tripled: The firm tripled its share count in NETSTREIT to over 14.8 million shares, valuing the stake at $278.7 million, indicating strong bullish sentiment towards single-tenant retail REITs.
- New Investment Initiatives: Cohen & Steers initiated a position in NNN REIT with 245,403 shares valued at $10.3 million and invested $1.3 million in Sabra Health Care REIT, further diversifying its investment portfolio.
- Reduction Strategy: The firm cut its positions in 28 REITs, including the complete divestment of W.P. Carey, demonstrating a cautious approach towards certain assets, likely to optimize its investment strategy.
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- Earnings Highlights: Apple, Amazon, and TSMC have all achieved a 'triple play' this quarter, delivering growth in earnings, revenue, and guidance, which underscores strong market demand and business resilience, further solidifying their leadership positions in their respective industries.
- Market Reaction: Investors reacted positively to the earnings reports from these three companies, driving stock prices higher, which reflects a renewed confidence in tech stocks and may attract more capital inflows into the technology sector.
- Industry Impact: The robust performance of these companies not only enhances their market valuations but may also lead to upward revisions in earnings expectations for other tech firms, creating a virtuous cycle that could further drive the recovery of the entire industry.
- Future Outlook: As the global economy gradually recovers, the success stories of Apple, Amazon, and TSMC may inspire other companies to adopt similar growth strategies, fostering innovation and investment that drive long-term growth.
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- Quarterly Dividend Announcement: Welltower declares a quarterly dividend of $0.74 per share, consistent with previous distributions, reflecting the company's stable cash flow and shareholder return strategy, which is likely to attract more investor interest.
- Dividend Yield: The forward yield of 1.38% provides a relatively stable income source in the current market environment, potentially enhancing investor confidence in this REIT.
- Shareholder Record Dates: The dividend will be payable on May 21, with a record date of May 13 and an ex-dividend date also on May 13, ensuring eligible shareholders receive their payouts promptly, thereby strengthening the shareholder base.
- Strong Financial Performance: Welltower's Q1 FFO of $1.47 beats estimates by $0.03, while revenue of $3.35 billion exceeds expectations by $150 million, demonstrating the company's robust performance and growth potential in the market.
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- Earnings Beat: Welltower reported a normalized FFO of $1.47 per diluted share for Q1, a 23% year-over-year increase that surpassed the S&P Cap IQ consensus estimate of $1.44, indicating strong performance in the senior housing market.
- Significant Revenue Growth: The company achieved revenues of $3.35 billion in Q1, up from $2.42 billion year-over-year and exceeding market expectations of $3.20 billion, reflecting a positive impact from a 22.1% growth in its seniors housing operating portfolio.
- Debt Improvement: As of March 31, Welltower's net debt to consolidated enterprise value ratio decreased to 8.8% from 10.8% as of December 31, indicating a continued improvement in the company's financial health.
- Guidance Raised: Welltower raised its full-year 2026 normalized FFO per share guidance to a range of $6.21 to $6.35, up from $6.09 to $6.25, demonstrating the company's confidence in its future performance.
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- Earnings Announcement Schedule: Welltower is set to release its Q1 2023 earnings report on April 28 after market close, with consensus estimates predicting a FFO of $1.44 per share and revenue of $3.2 billion, highlighting investor interest in its financial performance.
- Market Expectation Analysis: The consensus FFO and revenue estimates suggest stability for Welltower in the REIT sector, although recent cautious sentiments from the market may impact investor confidence regarding its future outlook.
- Industry Context: As a leading REIT, Welltower faces mixed opinions from market analysts, with some praising its performance while others caution that its current valuation may be too high, necessitating a careful approach from investors.
- Economic Environment Impact: Given the wealth accumulation of the baby boomer generation, Welltower's business model may be affected, prompting investors to monitor how it adapts to future economic changes and shifts in market demand.
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