Broadstone Net Lease, Inc. (BNL) FY 2023 MD&A

Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

The following Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations (“MD&A”) is intended to help the reader understand our results of operations and financial condition. This MD&A is provided as a supplement to, and should be read in conjunction with, our Consolidated Financial Statements and the accompanying Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements appearing in Item 8. “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Overview

We are an industrial-focused, diversified net lease real estate investment trust (“REIT”) that invests in primarily single-tenant commercial real estate properties that are net leased on a long-term basis to a diversified group of tenants. As of December 31, 2023, our portfolio includes 796 properties, with 789 properties located in 44 U.S. states and seven properties located in four Canadian provinces.

We focus on investing in real estate that is operated by creditworthy single tenants in industries characterized by positive business drivers and trends. We target properties that are an integral part of the tenants’ businesses and are therefore opportunities to secure long-term net leases. Through long-term net leases, our tenants are able to retain operational control of their strategically important locations, while allocating their debt and equity capital to fund core business operations rather than real estate ownership.

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Diversified Portfolio. As of December 31, 2023, our portfolio comprised approximately 38.3 million rentable square feet of operational space, was highly diversified based on property type, geography, tenant, and industry, and was cross-diversified within each (e.g., property-type diversification within a geographic concentration):

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Property Type: We are diversified across industrial, healthcare, restaurant, and retail property types. Within these sectors, we have meaningful concentrations in manufacturing, distribution and warehouse, food processing, casual dining, clinical, quick service restaurants, and general merchandise.

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Geographic Diversification: Our properties are located in 44 U.S. states and four Canadian provinces, with no single geographic concentration exceeding 9.7% of our ABR.

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Tenant and Industry Diversification: Our properties are occupied by approximately 220 different commercial tenants who operate 208 different brands that are diversified across 53 differing industries, with no single tenant accounting for more than 4.1% of our ABR.

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Strong In-Place Leases with Significant Remaining Lease Term. As of December 31, 2023, our portfolio was approximately 99.4% leased with an ABR weighted average remaining lease term of approximately 10.5 years, excluding renewal options.

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Standard Contractual Base Rent Escalation. Approximately 97.3% of our leases have contractual rent escalations, with an ABR weighted average minimum increase of 2.0%.

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Extensive Tenant Financial Reporting. Approximately 93.8% of our tenants, based on ABR, provide financial reporting, of which 86.0% are required to provide us with specified financial information on a periodic basis and an additional 7.8% of our tenants report financial statements publicly, either through SEC filings or otherwise.

Factors That Impact Our Result of Operations

Our results of operations and financial condition are affected by numerous factors, many of which are beyond our control. Key factors that typically impact our results of operations and financial condition, include rental rates, property dispositions, lease renewals and occupancy, investment activity, net lease terms, interest expense, general and administrative expenses, tenant bankruptcies, and impairments.

Rental Rates

Our ability to grow rental revenue from our existing portfolio will depend on our ability to realize the rental escalations built into our leases. As of December 31, 2023, leases contributing approximately 97.3% of our ABR provided for increases in future ABR, generally ranging from 1.5% to 3.0% annually, with an ABR weighted average minimum increase of 2.0%. Generally, our rent escalators increase rent on specified dates by a fixed percentage. Approximately 11.8% of our rent escalators are based on an increase in the CPI over a specified period and 2.7% of our leases are flat leases, meaning they do not provide for rent increases during their terms.

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Property Dispositions

From time to time, we strategically dispose of properties, primarily when we believe the risk profile has changed and become misaligned with our then current risk-adjusted return objectives. The resulting gains or losses on dispositions may materially impact our operating results, and the recognition of a gain or loss on the sale of real estate varies from transaction to transaction based on fluctuations in asset prices and demand in the real estate market at the time a property is listed for sale.

Lease Renewals and Occupancy

As of December 31, 2023, the ABR weighted average remaining term of our portfolio was approximately 10.5 years, excluding tenant renewal options, and leases for five properties, or 1.2% of ABR, will expire during 2024. Approximately 3% of the properties in our portfolio are subject to tenant leases without at least one renewal option. Approximately 60.6% of our ABR was derived from leases that will expire after 2030, and no more than 13.6% of our ABR was derived from leases that expire in any single year up to 2030. The stability of the rental revenue generated by our properties depends principally on our tenants’ ability to pay rent and our ability to collect rents, renew expiring leases or re-lease space upon the expiration or other termination of leases, lease currently vacant properties, and maintain or increase rental rates at our leased properties. To the extent our properties become vacant and are not subject to a lease, we would forego rental income while remaining responsible for the payment of property taxes and maintaining the property until it is re-leased, which could negatively impact our operating results. Our portfolio was 99.4% occupied as of December 31, 2023.

Investment Activity

Our historical growth in revenues and earnings has been achieved through rent escalations associated with existing in-place leases, coupled with rental income generated from accretive property investments. Our ability to grow revenue will depend, to a significant degree, on our ability to identify and complete acquisitions that meet our investment criteria. Changes in capitalization rates, interest rates, or other factors may impact our acquisition opportunities in the future. Market conditions may also impact the total returns we can achieve on our investments. Our investment volume also depends on our ability to access third-party debt and equity financing.

Net Lease Terms

Substantially all of our leases are net, pursuant to which our tenant generally is obligated to pay most recurring expenses associated with the leased property including real estate taxes, insurance, maintenance, and repairs. The remaining leases generally require that we pay some property expenses such as real estate taxes, insurance, or certain repairs and maintenance. Additionally, we seek to use master lease structures when possible, pursuant to which we lease multiple properties to a single tenant on an all or none basis. Master leases strengthen our ability to preserve rental revenue and prevent costs associated with vacancies for underperforming properties. As of December 31, 2023, master leases contributed 69.0% of the ABR associated with multi-site tenants (406 of 675 properties), and 41.5% of our overall ABR (406 of our 796 properties).

Interest Expense

We anticipate that we will continue to incur debt to fund future investment activity, which will increase the amount of interest expense we incur. In addition, although we attempt to limit our total floating-rate debt exposure, changes in the interest rate environment could either increase or decrease our weighted average interest rate in the future. As of December 31, 2023, 99.2% of our debt was fixed, with $30 million of interest rate swap notional maturing in the fourth quarter of 2024. Any changes to our debt structure or debt financing associated with property investments, could materially influence our operating results depending on the terms of any such debt. Our current investment grade credit ratings are ‘BBB’ from S&P Global Ratings (“S&P”) and ‘Baa2’ from Moody’s Investors Service (“Moody’s”), which allow us to take advantage of the lower cost of debt. However, a downgrade in our credit rating, or interest rate change due to governmental monetary and tax policies, domestic and international economic and political conditions, or other factors beyond our control, could also increase the amount of interest we pay under our debt agreements.

General and Administrative Expenses

Our general and administrative expenses primarily consist of employee compensation and related costs, third party legal, accounting, and consulting expenses, travel and entertainment, and general office expenses.

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Impact of Inflation

Our leases with tenants of our properties are long-term in nature, with a current weighted average remaining lease term of 10.5 years as of December 31, 2023. To mitigate the impact of inflation on our fixed revenue streams, we have implemented limited escalation clauses in our leases. As of December 31, 2023, substantially all of our leases had contractual rent escalations, with an ABR weighted average minimum increase of 2.0%. A majority of our leases have fixed annual rent increases or periodic escalations over the term of the lease (e.g., a 10% increase every five years), and the remaining portion has annual rent escalations based on increases in the CPI. These lease escalations mitigate the risk of fixed revenue streams in the case of an inflationary economic environment, and provide increased return in otherwise stable market conditions. As a majority of our portfolio has fixed lease escalations, we are limited in our same store rental revenue inflation protection.

Our focus on single-tenant, net leases also mitigates the potential impact of fluctuations in the cost of services and maintenance as a result of inflation. For a portion of our portfolio, we have leases that are not fully net, and, therefore, we bear certain responsibilities for the maintenance and structural component replacements (e.g., roof, structure, or parking lot) that may be required in the future, although the tenants are still required to pay all operating expenses associated with the property (e.g., real estate taxes, insurance, and maintenance). Inflation and increased costs may have an adverse impact to our tenants and their creditworthiness if the increase in costs are greater than their increase in revenue. Where we cannot implement a net lease, we attempt to limit our exposure to inflation through the use of warranties and other remedies that reduce the likelihood of a significant capital outlay.

Tenant Bankruptcies

Adverse economic conditions, particularly those that affect the markets in which our properties are located, or downturns in our tenants’ industries could impair our tenants’ ability to meet their lease obligations to us and our ability to renew expiring leases or re-lease space. In particular, the bankruptcy of one or more of our tenants could adversely affect our ability to collect rents from such tenants and maintain our portfolio’s occupancy.

Impairments

We review long-lived assets to be held and used for possible impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying amounts may not be recoverable. If, and when, such events or changes in circumstances are present, an impairment exists to the extent the carrying value of the long-lived asset or asset group exceeds the sum of the undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use of the long-lived asset or asset group and its eventual disposition. Such cash flows include expected future operating income, as adjusted for trends and prospects, as well as the effects of demand, competition, and other factors. Significant judgment is made as to if and when impairment should be taken. If our strategy, or one or more of the assumptions described above, changes in the future, we may have to recognize an impairment. Indications of a tenant’s inability to continue as a going concern, changes in our view or strategy relative to a tenant’s business or industry, or changes in our long-term hold strategies, could each be indicative of an impairment triggering event. For the year ended December 31, 2023, we recognized $31.3 million of impairment due to a change in our long-term hold strategy for four properties.

Results of Operations

Discussion of our Results of Operations for the year ended December 31, 2022 compared to the year ended December 31, 2021 was previously filed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. See Item 7. “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” under the heading “Results of Operations—Year Ended December 31, 2022 Compared to Year Ended year ended December 31, 2021.”

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Year Ended December 31, 2023 Compared to Year Ended December 31, 2022

Lease revenues, net

The increase in Lease revenues, net was primarily due to recognizing a full year of rental revenue for all property acquisitions made during 2022 partially offset by the reductions of revenues associated with property dispositions. During the year ended December 31, 2022, we invested $907.2 million, in 87 properties at a weighted average initial cash capitalization rate of 6.4%. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we invested $68.4 million in new property acquisitions and revenue generating capital expenditures at a weighted average initial cash capitalization rate of 7.2%, and we disposed of 14 properties for net proceeds of $195.0 million at a weighted average cash capitalization rate of 6.0%. The increase in lease revenues was additionally due to an increase in lease termination fee income, which we classified as other income from real estate transactions in the table above, associated with the early lease termination and sale of an office property for total proceeds of $39.5 million. The timing and amount of lease termination income varies from period to period.

Operating Expenses

Depreciation and amortization

The increase in depreciation and amortization during the year ended December 31, 2023 was primarily due to properties acquired in the previous year having a full year’s worth of depreciation in the current year, offset by net dispositions for the year ended December 31, 2023.

General and administrative

The increase in general and administrative expense for the year ended December 31, 2023 was primarily due to increases of stock-based compensation expense associated with an additional annual grant during the first quarter of 2023, payroll expense related to general annual merit adjustments, and transaction-related expenses for investments that did not close during the year. This was partially offset by a decrease in directors and officers insurance expense, associated with the length of time that has elapsed since our initial public offering in 2020.

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Provision for impairment of investment in rental properties

During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recognized $31.3 million of impairment on our investments in rental properties, primarily due to a change in our long-term hold strategy on Green Valley Medical Center, compared to $5.5 million of impairment during the year ended December 31, 2022. The following table presents the impairment charges for their respective periods:

The timing and amount of impairment fluctuates from period to period depending on the specific facts and circumstances.

Other income (expenses)

Interest expense

The increase in interest expense reflects an increase in our weighted average cost of our United States Dollar (“USD”) Revolving Credit Facility borrowings, our only variable rate debt. At December 31, 2023, the one-month SOFR rate was 5.35%, compared with 4.36% at December 31, 2022. This increase was offset by decreased average outstanding borrowings. Since December 31, 2022, we decreased total outstanding borrowings by $116.0 million, excluding the impacts of foreign exchange remeasurement.

Gain on sale of real estate

Our recognition of a gain or loss on the sale of real estate varies from transaction to transaction based on fluctuations in asset prices and demand in the real estate market. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recognized gains of $54.3 million on the sale of 14 properties, compared to gains of $16.0 million on the sale of eight properties during the year ended December 31, 2022.

Other income (expenses)

The change in other income during the year ended December 31, 2023 was primarily $1.7 million of unrealized foreign exchange loss recognized on the remeasurement of our $100 million CAD Revolving Credit Facility borrowings, compared to a $5.6 million unrealized foreign exchange gain recognized during the year ended December 31, 2022.

Net Income and Net earnings per diluted share

The increase in net income is primarily due to a $38.4 million increase in the gain on sale of real estate, together with revenue growth of $35.4 million. These factors were partially offset by a $25.7 million increase in the provision for impairment of investment in rental properties and a $7.1 million decrease in other income (expenses).

GAAP net income includes items such as gain or loss on sale of real estate and provisions for impairment, among others, which can vary from quarter to quarter and impact period-over-period comparisons.

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Liquidity and Capital Resources

General

We acquire real estate using a combination of debt and equity capital and with cash from operations that is not otherwise distributed to our stockholders, and proceeds from dispositions of real estate properties. Our focus is on maximizing the risk-adjusted return to our stockholders through an appropriate balance of debt and equity in our capital structure. We are committed to maintaining an investment grade balance sheet through active management of our leverage profile and overall liquidity position. We believe our leverage strategy has allowed us to take advantage of the lower cost of debt while simultaneously strengthening our balance sheet, as evidenced by our current investment grade credit ratings of ‘BBB’ from S&P and ‘Baa2’ from Moody’s. We seek to maintain on a sustained basis a Leverage Ratio that is generally less than 6.0x. As of December 31, 2023, we had total debt outstanding and Net Debt of $1.9 billion each, and a Leverage Ratio of 5.0x.

Net Debt and Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre are non-GAAP financial measures, and Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre is calculated based upon EBITDA, EBITDAre, and Adjusted EBITDAre, each of which is also a non-GAAP financial measure. Refer to Non-GAAP Measures below for further details concerning our calculation of non-GAAP measures and reconciliations to the comparable GAAP measure.

Liquidity/REIT Requirements

Liquidity is a measure of our ability to meet potential cash requirements, including our ongoing commitments to repay debt, fund our operations, acquire properties, make distributions to our stockholders, and other general business needs. As a REIT, we are required to distribute to our stockholders at least 90% of our REIT taxable income determined without regard to the dividends paid deduction and excluding net capital gains, on an annual basis. As a result, it is unlikely that we will be able to retain substantial cash balances to meet our long-term liquidity needs, including repayment of debt and the acquisition of additional properties, from our annual taxable income. Instead, we expect to meet our long-term liquidity needs primarily by relying upon external sources of capital and proceeds from selective property dispositions.

Short-term Liquidity Requirements

Our short-term liquidity requirements consist primarily of funds necessary to pay for our operating expenses, including our general and administrative expenses as well as interest payments on our outstanding debt, to pay distributions, to fund our acquisitions that are under control or expected to close within a short time period, and to pay for commitments to fund development opportunities, tenant improvements, and revenue generating capital expenditures. Under leases where we are required to bear the cost of structural repairs and replacements, we do not currently anticipate making significant capital expenditures or incurring other significant property costs, including as a result of inflationary pressures in the current economic environment, because of the strong occupancy levels across our portfolio and the net lease nature of our leases. We expect to meet our short-term liquidity requirements primarily from cash and cash equivalents balances and net cash provided by operating activities, supplemented by borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility and capital recycled through selective property dispositions. We use cash on hand and borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility to initially fund acquisitions, which are subsequently repaid or replaced with proceeds from our equity and debt capital markets activities as well as proceeds from dispositions.

As detailed in the contractual obligations table below, we have approximately $214.1 million of expected obligations due throughout 2024, primarily consisting of $118.7 million of commitments to fund investments, $55.9 million of dividends declared, $37.2 million of interest expense due, and $2.3 million of mortgage amortization. We expect our cash provided by operating activities, as discussed below, will be sufficient to pay for our current obligations including interest and mortgage amortization. We expect to pay for commitments to fund investments and our dividends declared using our Revolving Credit Facility. As of December 31, 2023, we have $909.6 million of available capacity under our Revolving Credit Facility with sufficient leverage capacity to remain within our targeted leverage profile.

Long-term Liquidity Requirements

Our long-term liquidity requirements consist primarily of funds necessary to repay debt and invest in additional revenue generating properties. We expect to source debt capital from unsecured term loans from commercial banks, revolving credit facilities, private placement senior unsecured notes, and public bond offerings.

The source and mix of our debt capital in the future will be impacted by market conditions as well as our continued focus on lengthening our debt maturity profile to better align with our portfolio’s long-term leases, staggering debt maturities to reduce the risk that a significant amount of debt will mature in any single year in the future, and managing our exposure to interest rate risk. We have no material debt maturities until 2026, as detailed in the table below.

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We expect to meet our long-term liquidity requirements primarily from borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility, future debt and equity financings, and proceeds from limited sales of our properties. Our ability to access these capital sources may be impacted by unfavorable market conditions, particularly in the debt and equity capital markets, that are outside of our control. In addition, our success will depend on our operating performance, our borrowing restrictions, our degree of leverage, and other factors. Our acquisition growth strategy significantly depends on our ability to obtain acquisition financing on favorable terms. We seek to reduce the risk that long-term debt capital may be unavailable to us by strengthening our balance sheet by investing in real estate with creditworthy tenants and lease guarantors, and by maintaining an appropriate mix of debt and equity capitalization. We also, from time to time, obtain or assume non-recourse mortgage financing from banks and insurance companies secured by mortgages on the corresponding specific property subject to limitations imposed by our Revolving Credit Facility covenants and our investment grade credit rating.

Equity Capital Resources

Our equity capital is primarily provided through our at-the-market common equity offering program (“ATM Program”), as well as follow-on equity offerings. Under the terms of our ATM Program we may, from time to time, publicly offer and sell shares of our common stock having an aggregate gross sales price of up to $400 million. The ATM Program provides for forward sale agreements, enabling us to set the price of shares upon pricing the offering while delaying the issuance of shares and the receipt of the net proceeds. We did not raise any equity on our ATM Program during the twelve months ended December 31, 2023, and have approximately $145.4 million of available capacity remaining on the ATM Program as of December 31, 2023.

The following table presents information about our ATM Program activity:

Our public offerings have been used to repay debt, fund acquisitions, and for other general corporate purposes.

As we continue to invest in accretive real estate properties, we expect to balance our debt and equity capitalization, while maintaining a Leverage Ratio below 6.0x on a sustained basis.

Unsecured Indebtedness and Capital Markets Activities as of and for the Year Ended December 31, 2023

The following table sets forth our outstanding Revolving Credit Facility, unsecured term loans and senior unsecured notes at December 31, 2023.

(a)
At December 31, 2023, the balance includes $100 million CAD borrowings remeasured to $75.4 million USD, and was subject to the one-month Canadian Dollar Offered Rate of 5.46%.

(b)
Effective July 1, 2023, the loan converted into a one-month SOFR borrowing concurrent with LIBOR's cessation.

(c)
At December 31, 2023, one-month SOFR was 5.35%.

(d)
Our Revolving Credit Facility contains two six-month extension options subject to certain conditions, including the payment of an extension fee equal to 0.0625% of the revolving commitments.

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Revolving Credit Facility

Our Revolving Credit Facility has a $1.0 billion capacity with a maturity date of March 2026 and contains two six-month extension options, subject to certain conditions, including an extension fee equal to 0.0625%. In addition to United States Dollars (“USD”), borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility can be made in Pound Sterling, Euros or Canadian Dollars (“CAD”) up to an aggregate amount of $500.0 million. Borrowings under the amended credit facility are subject to interest only payments at variable rates equal to the applicable reference rate plus a margin of 0.85% based on our current credit ratings of ‘BBB’ and ‘Baa2’ from S&P and Moody’s, respectively. In addition, the Revolving Credit Facility is subject to a facility fee on the amount of the revolving commitments, based on our credit rating. The applicable facility fee is 0.20% per annum.

2026 Unsecured Term Loan

Borrowings under the 2026 Unsecured Term Loan are subject to interest at variable rates based on one-month adjusted SOFR plus a margin based on our credit rating ranging between 0.85% and 1.65% based on our credit rating.

2027 Unsecured Term Loan and 2029 Unsecured Term Loan

Borrowings under the 2027 Unsecured Term Loan and 2029 Unsecured Term Loan bear interest at variable rates based on one-month adjusted SOFR plus a margin based on our credit rating ranging between 0.80% and 1.60% per annum for the 2027 Unsecured Term Loan, and 1.15% and 2.20% per annum for the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan.

2027 Senior Unsecured Notes - Series A

The 2027 Senior Unsecured Notes - Series A are payable interest only semiannually during their term, bear interest at a fixed rate of 4.84% per annum, and mature in April 2027.

2028 Senior Unsecured Notes - Series B and 2030 Senior Unsecured Notes - Series C

The 2028 Senior Unsecured Notes - Series B and 2030 Senior Unsecured Notes - Series C are payable interest only semiannually during their term, and bear interest at fixed rates of 5.09% per annum and 5.19% per annum, respectively. Series B Notes mature in July 2028, and the Series C Notes mature in July 2030.

2031 Senior Unsecured Public Notes

Borrowings under the 2031 Senior Unsecured Public Notes are subject to interest only, semi-annual payments at a fixed rate of 2.60% per annum and mature in September 2031.

Debt Covenants

We are subject to various covenants and financial reporting requirements pursuant to our debt facilities, which are summarized below. As of December 31, 2023, we believe we were in compliance with all of our covenants on all outstanding borrowings. In the event of default, either through default on payments or breach of covenants, we may be restricted from paying dividends to our stockholders in excess of dividends required to maintain our REIT qualification. For each of the previous three years, we paid dividends out of our cash flows from operations in excess of the distribution amounts required to maintain our REIT qualification.

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Contractual Obligations

The following table provides information with respect to our contractual commitments and obligations as of December 31, 2023 (in thousands). Refer to the discussion in the Liquidity and Capital Resources section above for further discussion over our short and long-term obligations.

(a)
Our Revolving Credit Facility contains two six-month extension options subject to certain conditions, including the payment of an extension fee equal to 0.0625% of the revolving commitments.

(b)
Interest expense is projected based on the outstanding borrowings and interest rates in effect as of December 31, 2023. This amount includes the impact of interest rate swap agreements.

(c)
Amounts include dividends declared as of December 31, 2023 of $0.285 per common share and OP Unit. Future undeclared dividends have been excluded.

(d)
Amounts include acquisitions under control, defined as under contract or executed letter of intent, and commitments to fund revenue generating capital expenditures and development opportunities.

At December 31, 2023, investment in rental property of $120.5 million, was pledged as collateral against our mortgages.

Additionally, we are a party to two separate tax protection agreements with the contributing members of two distinct UPREIT transactions and a third tax protection agreement entered into in connection with the internalization of our management in February 2020. The tax protection agreements require us to indemnify the beneficiaries in the event of a sale, exchange, transfer, or other disposal of the contributed property, and in the case of the tax protection agreement entered into in connection with the Company’s internalization, the entire Company, in a taxable transaction that would cause such beneficiaries to recognize a gain that is protected under the agreements, subject to certain exceptions. Based on values as of December 31, 2023, taxable sales of the applicable properties would trigger liability under the three agreements of approximately $20.4 million. Based on information available, we do not believe that the events resulting in liability as detailed above have occurred or are likely to occur in the foreseeable future. Accordingly, we have excluded these commitments from the contractual commitments table above.

Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities

We are exposed to interest rate risk arising from changes in interest rates on the floating-rate borrowings under our unsecured credit facilities. Borrowings pursuant to our unsecured credit facilities bear interest at floating rates based on SOFR or CDOR plus an applicable margin. Accordingly, fluctuations in market interest rates may increase or decrease our interest expense, which will in turn, increase or decrease our net income and cash flow.

We attempt to manage the interest rate risk on variable rate borrowings by entering into interest rate swaps. As of December 31, 2023, we had 32 interest rate swaps outstanding with an aggregate notional amount of $975.4 million. Under these agreements, we receive monthly payments from the counterparties equal to the related variable interest rates multiplied by the outstanding notional amounts. In turn, we pay the counterparties each month an amount equal to a fixed interest rate multiplied by the related outstanding notional amounts. The intended net impact of these transactions is that we pay a fixed interest rate on our variable-rate borrowings. The interest rate swaps have been designated by us as cash flow hedges for accounting purposes and are reported at fair value. We assess, both at inception and on an ongoing basis, the effectiveness of our qualifying cash flow hedges. We have not entered, and do not intend to enter, into derivative or interest rate transactions for speculative purposes.

In addition, we own investments in Canada, and as a result are subject to risk from the effects of exchange rate movements in the Canadian dollar, which may affect future costs and cash flows. We funded a significant portion of our Canadian investments through Canadian dollar borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility, which is intended to act as a natural hedge against our Canadian dollar investments. The Canadian dollar Revolving Credit Facility borrowings are remeasured each reporting period, with the unrealized foreign currency gains and losses flowing through earnings. These unrealized foreign currency gains and losses do not impact our cash flows from operations until settled, and are expected to directly offset the changes in the value of our net investments as a result of changes in the Canadian dollar. Our Canadian investments are recorded at their historical exchange rates, and therefore are not impacted by changes in the value of the Canadian dollar.

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Cash Flows

Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash totaled $20.6 million, $60.0 million, and $27.8 million at December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021, respectively. The table below shows information concerning cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021:

The increase in net cash provided by operating activities during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was mainly due to growth in our real estate portfolio and associated incremental net lease revenues.

The increase in net cash provided by investing activities during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 was mainly due to increased disposition volume. The increase in net cash used in investing activities in 2022 as compared to 2021 was driven by an increase in investing activities.

The decrease in net cash (used in) provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2023 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2022, mainly reflects a decrease in our total outstanding borrowings in 2023. The increase in net cash provided by financing activities during the year ended December 31, 2022 as compared to the year ended December 31, 2021, mainly reflects an increase in net proceeds from equity and debt offerings in 2022 to fund growth in our real estate portfolio.

Non-GAAP Measures

FFO, Core FFO, and AFFO

We compute Funds From Operations (“FFO”) in accordance with the standards established by the Board of Governors of Nareit, the worldwide representative voice for REITs and publicly traded real estate companies with an interest in the U.S. real estate and capital markets. Nareit defines FFO as GAAP net income or loss adjusted to exclude net gains (losses) from sales of certain depreciated real estate assets, depreciation and amortization expense from real estate assets, and impairment charges related to certain previously depreciated real estate assets. FFO is used by management, investors, and analysts to facilitate meaningful comparisons of operating performance between periods and among our peers, primarily because it excludes the effect of real estate depreciation and amortization and net gains (losses) on sales, which are based on historical costs and implicitly assume that the value of real estate diminishes predictably over time, rather than fluctuating based on existing market conditions.

We compute Core Funds From Operations (“Core FFO”) by adjusting FFO, as defined by Nareit, to exclude certain GAAP income and expense amounts that we believe are infrequently recurring, unusual in nature, or not related to its core real estate operations, including write-offs or recoveries of accrued rental income, lease termination fees, gain on insurance recoveries, the change in fair value of our earnout liability, cost of debt extinguishments, unrealized and realized gains or losses on foreign currency transactions, severance and executive transition costs, and other extraordinary items. Exclusion of these items from similar FFO-type metrics is common within the equity REIT industry, and management believes that presentation of Core FFO provides investors with a metric to assist in their evaluation of our operating performance across multiple periods and in comparison to the operating performance of our peers, because it removes the effect of unusual items that are not expected to impact our operating performance on an ongoing basis.

We compute Adjusted Funds From Operations (“AFFO”), by adjusting Core FFO for certain non-cash revenues and expenses, including straight-line rents, amortization of lease intangibles, adjustment to provision for credit losses, amortization of debt issuance costs, amortization of net mortgage premiums, (gain) loss on interest rate swaps and other non-cash interest expense, deferred taxes, stock-based compensation, and other specified non-cash items. We believe that excluding such items assists management and investors in distinguishing whether changes in our operations are due to growth or decline of operations at our properties or from other factors. We use AFFO as a measure of our performance when we formulate corporate goals, and is a factor in determining management compensation. We believe that AFFO is a useful supplemental measure for investors to consider because it will help them to better assess our operating performance without the distortions created by non-cash revenues or expenses.

Specific to our adjustment for straight-line rents, our leases include cash rents that increase over the term of the lease to compensate us for anticipated increases in market rental rates over time. Our leases do not include significant front-loading or back-loading of payments, or significant rent-free periods. Therefore, we find it useful to evaluate rent on a contractual basis as it allows for comparison of existing rental rates to market rental rates.

FFO, Core FFO, and AFFO may not be comparable to similarly titled measures employed by other REITs, and comparisons of our FFO, Core FFO, and AFFO with the same or similar measures disclosed by other REITs may not be meaningful.

Neither the SEC nor any other regulatory body has passed judgment on the acceptability of the adjustments to FFO that we use to calculate Core FFO and AFFO. In the future, the SEC, Nareit or another regulatory body may decide to standardize the allowable adjustments across the REIT industry and in response to such standardization we may have to adjust our calculation and characterization of Core FFO and AFFO accordingly.

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The following table reconciles net income (which is the most comparable GAAP measure) to FFO, Core FFO and AFFO:

(a)
Amount includes $1.7 million, ($5.6) million, and ($0.1) million of unrealized foreign exchange loss (gain) for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022, and 2021, respectively, primarily associated with our Canadian dollar denominated Revolver Credit Facility borrowings.

EBITDA, EBITDAre, Adjusted EBITDAre and Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre

We compute EBITDA as earnings before interest, income taxes and depreciation and amortization. EBITDA is a measure commonly used in our industry. We believe that this ratio provides investors and analysts with a measure of our performance that includes our operating results unaffected by the differences in capital structures, capital investment cycles and useful life of related assets compared to other companies in our industry. We compute EBITDAre in accordance with the definition adopted by Nareit, as EBITDA excluding gains (losses) from the sales of depreciable property and provisions for impairment on investment in real estate. We believe EBITDA and EBITDAre are useful to investors and analysts because they provide important supplemental information about our operating performance exclusive of certain non-cash and other costs. EBITDA and EBITDAre are not measures of financial performance under GAAP, and our EBITDA and EBITDAre may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. You should not consider our EBITDA and EBITDAre as alternatives to net income or cash flows from operating activities determined in accordance with GAAP.

We are focused on a disciplined and targeted investment strategy, together with active asset management that includes selective sales of properties. We manage our leverage profile using a ratio of Net Debt to Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre, each discussed further below, which we believe is a useful measure of our ability to repay debt and a relative measure of leverage, and is used in communications with our lenders and rating agencies regarding our credit rating. As we fund new investments using our unsecured Revolving Credit Facility, our leverage profile and Net Debt will be immediately impacted by current quarter investments. However, the full benefit of EBITDAre from new investments will not be received in the same quarter in which the properties are acquired. Additionally, EBITDAre for the quarter includes amounts generated by properties that have been sold during the quarter. Accordingly, the variability in EBITDAre caused by the timing of our investments and dispositions can temporarily distort our leverage ratios. We adjust EBITDAre (“Adjusted EBITDAre”) for the most recently completed quarter (i) to recalculate as if all investments and dispositions had occurred at the beginning of the quarter, (ii) to exclude certain GAAP income and expense amounts that are either non-cash, such as cost of debt extinguishments, realized or unrealized gains and losses on foreign currency transactions, or gains on insurance recoveries, or that we believe are one time, or unusual in nature because they relate to unique circumstances or transactions that had not previously occurred and which we do not anticipate occurring in the future, and (iii) to eliminate the impact of lease termination fees and other items that are not a result of normal operations. While investments in property developments have an immediate impact to Net Debt, we do not make an adjustment to EBITDAre until the quarter in which the lease commences. We then annualize quarterly Adjusted EBITDAre by multiplying it by four (“Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre”). You should not unduly rely on this measure as it is based on assumptions and estimates that may prove to be inaccurate. Our actual reported EBITDAre for future periods may be significantly different from our Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre. Adjusted EBITDAre and Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre are not measurements of performance under GAAP, and our Adjusted EBITDAre and Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre may not be comparable to similarly titled measures of other companies. You should not consider our Adjusted EBITDAre and Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre as alternatives to net income or cash flows from operating activities determined in accordance with GAAP.

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The following table reconciles net income (which is the most comparable GAAP measure) to EBITDA, EBITDAre, and Adjusted EBITDAre. Information is also presented with respect to Annualized EBITDAre and Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre:

(a)
Reflects an adjustment to give effect to all investments during the quarter as if they had been made as of the beginning of the quarter.

(b)
Reflects an adjustment to give effect to all dispositions during the quarter as if they had been sold as of the beginning of the quarter.

(c)
Amounts include $0.2 million of employee severance and ($0.1) million of forfeited stock-based compensation for the three months ended December 31, 2023.

Net Debt, Net Debt to Annualized EBITDAre and Net Debt to Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre

We define Net Debt as gross debt (total reported debt plus debt issuance costs) less cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash. We believe that the presentation of Net Debt to Annualized EBITDAre and Net Debt to Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre is useful to investors and analysts because these ratios provide information about gross debt less cash and cash equivalents, which could be used to repay debt, compared to our performance as measured using EBITDAre, and is used in communications with lenders and rating agencies regarding our credit rating. The following table reconciles total debt (which is the most comparable GAAP measure) to Net Debt, and presents the ratio of Net Debt to Annualized EBITDAre and Net Debt to Annualized Adjusted EBITDAre, respectively:

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Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The preparation of our consolidated financial statements in conformance with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses as well as other disclosures in the financial statements. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. These judgments affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the dates of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting periods. On an ongoing basis, management evaluates its estimates and assumptions; however, actual results may differ from these estimates and assumptions, which in turn could have a material impact on our financial statements. A summary of our significant accounting policies and procedures are included in Note 2, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies”, contained in Item 8. “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” included in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Management believes the following critical accounting policies, among others, affect its more significant estimates and assumptions used in the preparation of our consolidated financial statements.

Investment in Rental Property

Rental property accounted for under operating leases is recorded at cost. Rental property accounted for under direct financing leases and sales-type are recorded at its net investment, which generally represents the cost of the property at the inception of the lease.

We account for acquisitions of real estate as asset acquisitions in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 805, Business Combinations, as substantially all of the fair value of the assets acquired are concentrated in a single identifiable asset or group of similar identifiable assets.

We allocate the purchase price of investments in rental property accounted for as asset acquisitions based on the relative fair value of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed. These generally include tangible assets, consisting of land and land improvements, buildings and other improvements, and equipment, and identifiable intangible assets and liabilities, including the value of in-place leases and acquired above-market and below-market leases.

We use multiple sources to estimate fair value, including information obtained about each property as a result of our pre-acquisition due diligence and our marketing and leasing activities. Factors that impact our fair value determination include real estate market conditions, industry conditions that the tenant operates in, and characteristics of the real estate and/or real estate appraisals. Changes in any of these factors could impact the future purchase prices of our investments and the corresponding capitalization rates recognized.

The estimated fair value of the tangible assets of an acquired property is determined by valuing the property as if it were vacant. The as-if-vacant value is then allocated to land and land improvements, buildings, and equipment based on comparable sales and other relevant information with respect to the property, as estimated by management. Specifically, the “if vacant” value of buildings and equipment is calculated using an income approach. Assumptions used in the income approach to value the buildings include: capitalization and discount rates, lease-up time, market rents, make ready costs, land value, and land improvement value.

The estimated fair value of acquired in-place leases are the costs we would have had to incur to lease the properties to the occupancy level of the properties at the date of acquisition. Such costs include the fair value of leasing commissions and other operating costs that would have been incurred to lease the properties, had they been vacant, to their acquired occupancy level. Acquired in-place leases as of the date of acquisition are amortized over the remaining non-cancellable lease terms of the respective leases to amortization expense.

Acquired above-market and below-market lease values are recorded based on the present value (using an interest rate that reflects the risks associated with the lease acquired) of the differences between the contractual amounts to be paid pursuant to the in-place leases and management’s estimate of fair market value lease rates at the time of acquisition for the corresponding in-place leases. The capitalized above-market and below-market lease values are amortized as adjustments to rental income over the remaining term of the respective leases.

Management estimates the fair value of assumed mortgages based upon indications of then-current market pricing for similar types of debt with similar maturities. Assumed mortgages are initially recorded at their estimated fair value as of the assumption date, and the difference between such estimated fair value and the notes’ outstanding principal balance is amortized to interest expense over the remaining term of the debt.

Long-lived Asset Impairment

We review long-lived assets to be held and used for possible impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying amounts may not be recoverable. If, and when, such events or changes in circumstances are present, an impairment exists to the extent the carrying value of the long-lived asset or asset group exceeds the sum of the undiscounted cash flows expected to result from the use of the long-lived asset or asset group and its eventual disposition. Such cash flows include expected future operating income, as adjusted for trends and prospects, as well as the effects of demand, competition, and other factors. An impairment loss is measured as the amount by which the carrying amount of the long-lived asset or asset group exceeds the fair value. Significant judgment is made to determine if and when impairment should be taken. Management’s assessment of impairment as of December 31, 2023 was based on the most current information available to management. Certain of our properties may have fair values less than their carrying amounts. However, based on management’s plans with respect to each of those properties, we believe that their carrying amounts are recoverable and therefore, no impairment charges were recognized other than those described below. If the operating conditions mentioned above deteriorate or if our expected holding period for assets changes, subsequent tests for impairments could result in additional impairment charges in the future.

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Inputs used in establishing fair value for real estate assets generally fall within Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy, which are characterized as requiring significant judgment as little or no current market activity may be available for validation. The main indicator used to establish the classification of the inputs is current market conditions, as derived through the use of published commercial real estate market information. We determine the valuation of impaired assets using generally accepted valuation techniques including discounted cash flow analysis, income capitalization, analysis of recent comparable sales transactions, actual sales negotiations, and bona fide purchase offers received from third parties. We may consider a single valuation technique or multiple valuation techniques, as appropriate, when estimating the fair value of our real estate.

The following table summarizes our impairment charges resulting primarily from changes in our long-term hold strategy with respect to the individual properties:

During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recognized an impairment charge of $26.4 million on a healthcare property due to changes in our tenant’s ability to perform under the lease agreement, leading to a change in management’s long-term hold strategy and desire to sell in the near term. We determined the fair value measurement using a range of significant unobservable inputs, including a third-party appraisal, broker market information, and recent comparable vacant sales transactions. Decreases in the sale price assumptions based on continued marketing of the property could result in additional impairment in the future. Based on the range of fair value estimates, which was the best available information, an additional $9 million of impairment would be recorded if we sold the property at the low end of the range. The remaining impairments recognized during the year ended December 31, 2023 were immaterial.

Goodwill

Goodwill represents the excess of the amount paid over the fair value of the identifiable tangible and intangible assets acquired and liabilities assumed in a business combination and it assigned to one or more reporting units. We evaluate goodwill for impairment when an event occurs or circumstances change that indicate the carrying value may not be recoverable, or at least annually. Our annual testing date is November 30.

The goodwill impairment evaluation is completed using either a qualitative or quantitative approach. Under a qualitative approach, the impairment review for goodwill consists of an assessment of whether it is more-likely-than-not that the reporting unit’s fair value is less than its carrying value, including goodwill. If a qualitative approach indicates it is more likely-than-not that the estimated carrying value of a reporting unit (including goodwill) exceeds its fair value, or if we choose to bypass the qualitative approach, we perform the quantitative approach described below.

When we perform a quantitative test of goodwill for impairment, we compare the carrying value of a reporting unit with its fair value. If the fair value of the reporting unit exceeds its carrying amount, we do not consider goodwill to be impaired and no further analysis would be required. If the fair value is determined to be less than its carrying value, the amount of goodwill impairment equals the amount by which the reporting unit’s carrying value exceeds its fair value, not to exceed the carrying amount of goodwill.

Management determined that we have one reporting unit, consistent with our segment reporting analysis, which includes the acquisition, leasing, and ownership of net leased properties (i.e., the consolidated entity). When necessary to perform the quantitative test for goodwill impairment, our estimate of fair value is determined using a market approach, leveraging assumptions such as the fair value of our equity, and consideration of a control premium, if necessary, which includes an analysis of similar market transactions. While we believe the assumptions used to estimate the fair value of our reporting unit are reasonable, changes in these assumptions may have a material impact on our financial results. Based on the results of our annual goodwill impairment test on November 30, 2023, our annual goodwill impairment test date, we concluded that goodwill was not impaired.

Revenue Recognition

We account for leases in accordance with ASC 842, Leases. We commence revenue recognition on our leases based on a number of factors, including the initial determination that the contract is or contains a lease. Generally, all of our property related contracts are or contain leases, and therefore revenue is recognized when the lessee takes possession of or controls the physical use of the leased assets. In most instances this occurs on the lease commencement date. At the time of lease assumption or at the inception of a new lease, including new leases that arise from amendments, we assess the terms and conditions of the lease to determine the proper lease classification.

A lease is classified as an operating lease if none of the following criteria are met: (i) ownership transfers to the lessee at the end of the lease term, (ii) the lessee has a purchase option that is reasonably expected to be exercised, (iii) the lease term is for a major part of the economic life of the leased property, (iv) the present value of the future lease payments and any residual value guaranteed by the lessee that is not already reflected in the lease payments equals or exceeds substantially all of the fair value of the leased property, and (v) the leased property is of such a specialized nature that it is expected to have no future alternative use to the Company at the end of the lease term. If one or

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more of these criteria are met, the lease will generally be classified as a sales-type lease, unless the lease contains a residual value guarantee from a third party other than the lessee, in which case it would be classified as a direct financing lease under certain circumstances.

We account for the right to use land as a separate lease component, unless the accounting effect of doing so would be insignificant. Determination of significance requires management judgment. In determining whether the accounting effect of separately reporting the land component from other components for its real estate leases is significant, we assess: (i) whether separating the land component impacts the classification of any lease component, (ii) the value of the land component in the context of the overall contract, and (iii) whether the right to use the land is coterminous with the rights to use the other assets.

Derivative Instruments and Hedging

Management uses interest rate swap agreements to manage risks related to interest rate movements. Management documents its risk management strategy and hedge effectiveness at the inception of, and during the term of, each hedge. Our interest rate risk management strategy is intended to stabilize cash flow requirements by maintaining interest rate swap agreements to convert certain variable-rate debt to a fixed rate.

The interest rate swap agreements, designated and qualifying as cash flow hedges, are reported at fair value. Interest rate swaps are measured at fair value using inputs that are directly observable in active markets and are classified within Level 2 of the valuation hierarchy, using an income approach. Specifically, the fair value of the interest rate swaps is determined using a discounted cash flow analysis on the expected future cash flows of each instrument. This analysis utilizes observable market data including yield curves and implied volatilities to determine the market’s expectation of the future cash flows of the variable component. The fixed and variable components of the interest rate swaps are then discounted using calculated discount factors developed based on the overnight indexed swap (“OIS”) curve and are aggregated to arrive at a single valuation for the period. The Company also incorporates credit valuation adjustments to appropriately reflect both its own nonperformance risk and the respective counterparty’s nonperformance risk in the fair value measurements. Although the Company has determined that the majority of the inputs used to value its interest rate swaps fall within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy, the credit valuation adjustments associated with its interest rate swaps utilize Level 3 inputs, such as estimates of current credit spreads to evaluate the likelihood of default by itself and its counterparties. At December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company has assessed the significance of the impact of the credit valuation adjustments on the overall valuation of its derivative positions and has determined that the credit valuation adjustments are not significant to the overall valuation. As a result, the Company has determined that its interest rate swap valuations in their entirety are appropriately classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy.

When an existing cash flow hedge is terminated, we determine the accounting treatment for the accumulated gain or loss recognized in Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss), based on the probability of the hedged forecasted transaction occurring within the period the cash flow hedge was anticipated to affect earnings. If management determines that the hedged forecasted transaction is probable of occurring during the original period, the accumulated gain or loss is reclassified into earnings over the remaining life of the cash flow hedge using a straight-line method. If management determines that the hedged forecasted transaction is not probable of occurring during the original period, the entire amount of accumulated gain or loss is reclassified into earnings at such time.

Impact of Recent Accounting Pronouncements

For information on the impact of recent accounting pronouncements on our business, see the captions Recently Adopted Accounting Standards and Other Recently Issued Accounting Standards in Note 2, “Summary of Significant Accounting Policies” of the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 8. “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data” of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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