Recorded January 26

90 minutes

Background and Agenda | Panelists | Get log-in

Background

While the economy looks firmer today than it did twelve months ago, 2010 still poses unique challenges. Strong analytic skills and an understanding of current markets conditions and practices are essential to keep ahead and put yourself in a strong position.

Agenda

• • What is the economic and fundamental outlook for REITs?

  • What is the state of the financing markets?

  • Will there be an uptick in asset acquisitions?

  • How active will the IPO market turn out to be?

  • How will blind pools fare against the established REITs?

  • Will the REIT space see M&A return this year?

  • How much more capital raising activity can we expect?

  • How quickly will REITs seek to increase their dividends?

Panelists

Mark Biffert, Executive Director and Senior Analyst, Oppenheimer & Co., Inc.

Mark Biffert is Executive Director and senior analyst covering the REITs/Real Estate industry. Prior to joining Oppenheimer, Mark was a senior associate analyst at Goldman, Sachs & Co. covering Apartment, Healthcare, Diversified, Self-Storage, and Shopping Center REITs.

Prior to working on Wall Street, Mark held corporate controller positions in the specialty chemical and industrial sectors. Mark holds an MBA with an emphasis on international finance from Fordham University and a BA in Accounting and Management from Evangel University.

David Fick, Managing Director, Stifel Nicolaus

Mr. Fick joined the Stifel Nicolaus Research Team in connection with Stifel's acquisition of Legg Mason's Capital Markets Group in December of 2005. Prior to Legg Mason, David Fick was senior vice president of finance and compliance at Alex Brown Kleinwort Benson and equity vice president at Lasalle Partners when the two firms merged. Mr. Fick was also chief financial officer of Western Development/Mills Corporation and a practicing CPA and consultant with a regional accounting firm specializing in the real estate industry.

Mr. Fick is an instructor at Johns Hopkins University, where he teaches real estate finance, real estate accounting and taxation, and real estate capital markets. He holds an M.B.A. from Loyola College of Baltimore and a B.S. from Towson State University. Mr. Fick is a member of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, the International Council of Shopping Centers, the Urban Land Institute, and the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants.

Jim Taylor, Managing Director, Eastdil Secured

Mr. Taylor joined Eastdil Secured’s investment banking team as a result of Wells Fargo’s acquisition of Wachovia Securities in Dec 2008. Mr. Taylor originally joined Wachovia’s Real Estate Corporate Finance Group in 1998 and was promoted to Head of Real Estate Investment Banking at Wachovia in 2007. Over the years, Mr. Taylor has completed public debt and equity offerings, M&A transactions, asset and portfolio sales, private equity placements, mortgage financings and bank loans for numerous real estate clients.

Prior to joining Wachovia, Mr. Taylor practiced corporate and securities law with Hunton & Williams, where he represented both issuers and underwriters in public and private equity offerings, debt offerings and M&A transactions, with a focus on equity REITs.

Moira Dickinson (moderator), Senior Industry Editor, SNL Financial

As senior REIT editor at SNL Financial, Moira's coverage focuses on M&A, capital raising, and earnings trends, as well as issues in the wider commercial real estate industry.

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