Real Estate Daily Recap: Another Tough Day for REITs and Housing As Earnings Kicks Into High-Gear
Coming off their worst week of 2019, the Hoya Capital US REIT Index finished the day lower by 1.3% and extended their losses since the start of last week to more than 4%. The cell tower REIT sector was the lone segment in positive territory on the day while the mall, shopping center, and student housing sectors were the weakest. The S&P 500 finished the day higher by 0.1% and is still within about 1% of all-time record highs. The Nasdaq finished higher by 0.3%. At 2.59%, the 10-Year Yield finished the day higher by 3 basis points on the day as the continued climb higher in energy prices threaten to derail the 'Goldilocks' economic conditions that had powered real estate outperformance since late 2018.
The Hoya Capital US Housing Index finished the day higher by 0.3%, led to the upside by the Mortgage Lenders/Services sector. Homebuilder NVR (NVR) jumped more than 6% on the day after reporting better-than-expected results this morning. Whirlpool (WHR) reported results this afternoon and is higher in post-market trading. Wayfair (W), Amazon (AMZN), and RealPage each climbed more than 1% on the day.
The Home Furnishings and Real Estate Technology & Brokerage sectors were the relative underperforms on the day. Overstock (OSTK), Sleep Number (SNBR), At Home (HOME), and Bed Bath & Beyond Sleep Number (SNBR) finished lower on the day, as did Lennox (LII), which reported generally in-line earnings results this morning.
Existing home sales data, released this morning, was weaker than estimated as the lingering effects of the 2018 softness carry into this year. Per the NAR, existing sales came in at 5.21 million, below the 5.31 consensus estimates. This represents a 5.4% decrease from the same month last year.
The busy week for housing data and real estate earnings continues tomorrow with New Home Sales data and the FHFA Home Price Index. Earnings tomorrow include results from Homebuilding firms Meritage (MTH and Pulte (PHM) as well as Homebuilding Products & Materials firms Watsco (WSO) and Sherwin Williams (SHW).
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