Invest in farmland like industry leader Bill Gates – Farmland Partners (NYSE:FPI)

Bill Gates is the largest private farmland owner in the United States, with a portfolio of approximately 250,000 acres, according to Land Report.

Asked in a Reddit Ask Me Anything session why he was buying so much farmland, Gates replied, “I own less than 1/4,000th the amount of farmland in the United States. has invested in increasing the productivity of these farms and making them more productive.” There is no grand plan to create more jobs. In fact, all these decisions are made by a professional investment team. ”

If Gates thinks he's making a smart move by investing in farmland, he could do the same with this farmland-focused real estate investment trust (REIT).

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farmland partner

farmland partner FPI is the largest agricultural REIT in the United States by area. That portfolio consists of his nearly 300 farms totaling approximately 171,000 acres across 17 states as of the latest investor presentation.

Farmland Partners currently pays a quarterly dividend of $0.06 per share. This equates to an annual dividend of $0.24 per share. This gives the stock a yield of approximately 2.3% as of this writing.

Although the yield isn't very high, it's important to note that Farmland Partners paid a special dividend of $0.21 per share in January due to the significant increase in asset values. Including the special dividend, the company declared a 2023 dividend of $0.45 per share, which equates to a yield of about 4.3% at current levels.

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