Duke Realty's Industrial Properties Witness Solid Demand

Of late, Duke Realty Corp. (NYSE:DRE) has been experiencing solid demand for its industrial properties. Recently, the company announced that its speculatively developed 166,392-square-foot industrial building — Turnpike Crossing 6747 — has been completely leased within three months of delivery. This building marks the company’s third 100% leased industrial building in its Turnpike Crossing industrial park.

Notably, Turnpike Crossing enjoys a solid advantage for its location and accessibility. While Turnpike Crossing 6747 is fully leased to five companies, the prior-developed buildings in the park — Turnpike Crossing 1315 and 1333 — are 100% leased to six companies. The company is also considering a fourth building, spanning 146,250 square feet of space, in Turnpike Crossing. In fact, South Florida’s Turnpike Crossing encompasses 67.2 acres which can accommodate 882,850 square feet of area in up to six, modern, Class A warehouses.

Furthermore, Duke Realty noted that the completion of 387,180 square feet in new leases, renewals and expansions in its metro-area portfolio, since the beginning of 2018, along with the 2.7 million square feet in leases signed in 2017, helped the company’s 9.7-million-square-foot Cincinnati metro-area portfolio achieve full occupancy.

Notably, the industrial real estate asset category has grabbed attention due to elevated demand, recovering economy and job market, strengthening e-commerce market and a healthy manufacturing environment. This is opening up growth opportunities for industrial REITs, including Prologis, Inc. (NYSE:PLD) , DCT Industrial Trust (NYSE:DCT) , Duke Realty and Liberty Property Trust (NYSE:LPT) .

Particularly, Duke Realty has resorted to sale of sub-urban office assets and medical office buildings in the past, in a bid to transform into a domestic-focused industrial property REIT. Moreover, the quick leasing of its properties built on a speculative basis underscores the robust demand in the market for modern, first-class distribution space.

In fact, Duke Realty enjoys ownership and operations of industrial properties spread across nearly 146 million rentable square feet of space. These properties are located across 21 key logistics markets. Nevertheless, large-scale asset dispositions are expected to have a dilutive effect on earnings in the near term. Further, stiff competition and rate hike remain other concerns.

Duke Realty currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). Over the past month, the stock has appreciated 4.7%, outperforming 2.5% growth registered by the industry it belongs to. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

Will You Make a Fortune on the Shift to Electric Cars?

Here's another stock idea to consider. Much like petroleum 150 years ago, lithium power may soon shake the world, creating millionaires and reshaping geo-politics. Soon electric vehicles (EVs) may be cheaper than gas guzzlers. Some are already reaching 265 miles on a single charge.

With battery prices plummeting and charging stations set to multiply, one company stands out as the #1 stock to buy according to Zacks research.

It's not the one you think.

See This Ticker Free >>