Gladstone Land Acquires Farmland in Maryland’s Eastern Shore & Delaware and Provides Update on California Wildfires
September 01 2020 - 7:30AM
Gladstone Land Corporation (Nasdaq: LAND) (“Gladstone Land”
or the “Company”) announced that it has acquired 939 gross acres of
farmland in Maryland’s Eastern Shore and Delaware for approximately
$7.4 million. The farmland will be used primarily to grow
vegetables and sod. In connection with the acquisition,
Gladstone Land also entered into a 10-year lease agreement with a
large sod and vegetable grower in the region.
“We are very excited about this opportunity to enter into a new
region and partner with a great and diversified local grower,” said
Joseph Van Wingerden, Director (Real Estate) at Gladstone Land.
“We hope to continue to expand in the mid-Atlantic region and
offer local farmers a chance to grow their acreage. The
access to major cities and abundant water sources makes farms in
this region extremely attractive.”“With this acquisition, Gladstone
Land now owns farms in 12 different states and 25 different growing
regions across the U.S.,” said David Gladstone, President and CEO
of Gladstone Land. “We are seeing increasing opportunities in
this region for high-value farmland growing potatoes, peppers, sod,
and other high-value crops. We hope to be able to take
advantage of certain of these opportunities to increase the overall
diversification within the list of farms owned by the Company.
“Our farms remain 100% occupied, and our farmers continue to
take advantage of elevated pricing for fresh produce and certain
other foods at grocery stores. The fallout from COVID-19 has
not negatively affected the majority of our farmers in any
significant way. There is still an oversupply of corn, wheat,
and soy, which continues to drive depressed prices for those crops.
We only have a few farms growing these types of crops, making
up less than 10% of our total revenue, and a significant portion of
that is organic.
“In addition, in light of the current wildfires spreading
throughout certain parts of California, we are reporting that none
of our farms have been damaged by any of the fires, and we do not
currently believe that the fires pose a threat to any of our
properties. As most of you know, our farms are largely in the
valleys and flatlands, while most of the fires are in the
mountains. Our thoughts are with those who have been injured
or have lost possessions because of the fires.”
About Gladstone Land
Corporation:Founded in 1997, Gladstone
Land is a publicly traded real estate investment trust that
acquires and owns farmland and farm-related properties located in
major agricultural markets in the U.S. and leases its properties to
unrelated third-party farmers. The Company, which reports the
aggregate fair value of its farmland holdings on a quarterly basis,
currently owns 116 farms, comprised of approximately 90,000 acres
in 12 different states, valued at approximately $919 million.
Gladstone Land’s farms are predominantly located in regions where
its tenants are able to grow fresh produce annual row crops, such
as berries and vegetables, which are generally planted and
harvested annually. The Company also owns farms growing
permanent crops, such as almonds, apples, figs, olives, pistachios,
and other orchards, as well as blueberry groves and vineyards,
which are generally planted every 10 to 20-plus years and harvested
annually. The Company may also acquire property related to
farming, such as cooling facilities, processing buildings,
packaging facilities, and distribution centers. The Company
pays monthly distributions to its stockholders and has paid 90
consecutive monthly cash distributions on its common stock since
its initial public offering in January 2013. The Company has
increased its common distributions 19 times over the prior 22
quarters, and the current per-share distribution on its common
stock is $0.0448 per month, or $0.5376 per year. Additional
information, including detailed information about each of the
Company’s farms, can be found at www.GladstoneFarms.com.
Owners or brokers who have farmland for sale in the U.S. should
contact:
- Eastern U.S. – Bill Frisbie at (703) 287-5839 or
bill.f@gladstoneland.com
- Midwest U.S. – Bill Hughes at (618) 606-2887 or
bill.h@gladstoneland.com
- Western U.S. – Bill Reiman at (805) 263-4778 or
bill.r@gladstoneland.com, or Tony Marci at (831) 225-0883 or
tony.m@gladstoneland.com
Lenders who are interested in providing the Company with
long-term financing on farmland should contact Jay Beckhorn at
(703) 587-5823 or Jay.Beckhorn@GladstoneCompanies.com.
For stockholder information on Gladstone Land, call (703)
287-5893. For Investor Relations inquiries related to any of
the monthly dividend-paying Gladstone funds, please visit
www.GladstoneCompanies.com.
All statements contained in this press release, other than
historical facts, may constitute "forward-looking statements"
within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as
amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as
amended. Words such as "anticipates," "expects," "intends,"
"plans," "believes," "seeks," "estimates" and variations of the
foregoing words and similar expressions are intended to identify
forward-looking statements. Readers should not rely upon
forward-looking statements because the matters they describe are
subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could
cause the Company's business, financial condition, liquidity,
results of operations, funds from operations or prospects to differ
materially from those expressed in or implied by such statements.
Such risks and uncertainties are disclosed under the caption
"Risk Factors" of the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
fiscal year ended December 31, 2019 (the “Form 10-K”), as filed
with the SEC on February 19, 2020, and certain other documents
filed with the SEC from time to time. The Company cautions
readers not to place undue reliance on any such forward-looking
statements, which speak only as of the date made. The Company
undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any
forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information,
future events, or otherwise, except as required by law.
For a definition of net asset value and a reconciliation to the
most directly comparable GAAP measure, please see the Company’s
Form 10-K.
SOURCE: Gladstone Land Corporation
For further information: Gladstone Land, 703-287-5893
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