MCLEAN, Va., Sept. 08, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Gladstone Land Corporation (Nasdaq: LAND) announced that it has acquired 2,515 gross acres of farmland in Fresno County, California, for approximately $31.8 million. The farm consists of 619 planted acres of mature pistachio trees and 1,896 acres of open farmland, 1,273 acres of which is organic. In connection with the acquisition, Gladstone Land also entered into an 8-year, triple-net leaseback agreement with the seller.
“We are very pleased to add more quality farmland and mature pistachio trees near Coalinga, California, to our portfolio,” said Tony Marci, Managing Director of Gladstone Land. “This acquisition allows us to develop a new relationship with a long-time farmer in the business and also helps the seller with its goals with this sale-leaseback transaction. We are particularly excited about this farm because of its historically high production and the high percentage of organic land.”
“The acquisition of this pistachio orchard and open farmland adds to our existing permanent crop farmland and organic ground growing vegetables and should result in another good, long-term investment for us,” said David Gladstone, President and CEO of Gladstone Land. “In addition, we are forming a new relationship with a very seasoned grower who has been in the pistachio and vegetable business for many years. We are continuing to evaluate a good list of potential farms to buy, as we work towards a strong end to 2020 after a record year of acquisitions in 2019.”
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 121 farms, comprised of approximately 93,000 acres in 12 different states, valued at approximately $951 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.
