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What's in the Cards for Healthpeak (DOC) This Earnings Season?

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Healthpeak Properties, Inc. (DOC - Free Report) is slated to report second-quarter 2024 results on Jul 25, after market close. While the quarterly results are expected to reflect year-over-year growth in revenues, funds from operations (FFO) per share might exhibit a decline.

In the last reported quarter, this healthcare real estate investment trust (REIT) posted an FFO as adjusted per share of 45 cents, beating the Zacks Consensus Estimate by 2.27%. Results reflected better-than-anticipated revenues. Moreover, growth in total merger-combined same-store cash (adjusted) net operating income was witnessed across the portfolio.

In the preceding four quarters, Healthpeak’s FFO, as adjusted per share, surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate on all occasions, with the average beat being 2.26%. The graph below depicts this surprise history:

 

 

Factors at Play

Amid an increasing life expectancy of the U.S. population and biopharma drug development growth opportunities, the demand for lab real estate assets has been increasing. Therefore, Healthpeak, with a geographically diverse lab portfolio, is likely to have experienced healthy demand during the second quarter, aiding leasing activity.

Moreover, the senior citizen population is on the rise and the healthcare expenditure of this age cohort is usually on the higher end compared with the general population. Healthpeak’s continuing care retirement community portfolio, which refers to its retirement communities that include independent living, assisted living and skilled nursing units, is anticipated to have benefited from this positive expenditure trend, supporting the segment’s quarterly performance.

Amid these tailwinds, the company’s top line is expected to have improved. In the second quarter, the Zacks Consensus Estimate for DOC’s rental and related revenues currently stands at $460 million, implying growth of 12.2% from the prior-year period’s reported figure.

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for second-quarter total revenues is pegged at $660.6 million, indicating a rise of 21.1% from the year-ago reported number.

However, high interest expenses are likely to have been a spoilsport for Healthpeak during the to-be-reported quarter. Elevated rates imply high borrowing costs for the company, affecting its ability to purchase or develop real estate.

Before the second-quarter earnings release, the company’s activities were inadequate to gain analysts’ confidence. The Zacks Consensus Estimate for the quarterly FFO per share has remained unchanged at 44 cents over the past month. Moreover, the figure suggests a 2.22% decrease from the year-ago quarter’s tally.

What Our Quantitative Model Predicts

Our proven model does not conclusively predict a surprise in terms of FFO per share for DOC this season. The combination of a positive Earnings ESP and a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy), 2 (Buy) or 3 (Hold) increases the chances of an FFO beat, which is not the case here.

Healthpeak currently has an Earnings ESP of 0.00% and carries a Zacks Rank of 4 (Sell). You can uncover the best stocks to buy or sell before they’re reported with our Earnings ESP Filter.

Stocks That Warrant a Look

Here are two stocks from the broader REIT sector — Welltower (WELL - Free Report) and Ventas (VTR - Free Report) — you may want to consider as our model shows that these have the right combination of elements to report a surprise this quarter.

Welltower, scheduled to report quarterly numbers on Jul 29, has an Earnings ESP of +0.67% and carries a Zacks Rank of 3. You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank stocks here.

Ventas, slated to release quarterly numbers on Aug 1, has an Earnings ESP of +1.76% and carries a Zacks Rank of 3 at present.

Stay on top of upcoming earnings announcements with the Zacks Earnings Calendar.

Note: Anything related to earnings presented in this write-up represents funds from operations (FFO), a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs.


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