Agree Realty Corp: Form 10-K for the period ended Dec 31, 2023

General

The Company is a fully integrated REIT primarily focused on the ownership, acquisition, development and management of retail properties net leased to industry leading tenants. The Company was founded in 1971 by its current Executive Chairman, Richard Agree, and its common stock was listed on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) in 1994. The Company’s assets are held by, and all of its operations are conducted through, directly or indirectly, the Operating Partnership of which the Company is the sole general partner and in which it held a 99.7% common interest as of December 31, 2023. Under the agreement of limited partnership of the Operating Partnership, the Company, as the sole general partner, has exclusive responsibility and discretion in the management and control of the Operating Partnership.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company’s portfolio consisted of 2,135 properties located in 49 states and totaling approximately 44.2 million square feet of Gross Leasable Area (“GLA”). The portfolio was approximately 99.8% leased and had a weighted average remaining lease term of approximately 8.4 years. A significant majority of the Company’s properties are leased to national tenants and approximately 69.1% of our annualized base rent was derived from tenants, or parent entities thereof, with an investment grade credit rating from S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service, Fitch Ratings or the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Substantially all of our tenants are subject to net lease agreements. A net lease typically requires the tenant to be responsible for minimum monthly rent and property operating expenses including property taxes, insurance and maintenance.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company had 72 full-time employees, covering acquisitions, development, legal, asset management, accounting, finance, administrative and executive functions.

The Company was incorporated in December 1993 under the laws of the State of Maryland. The Company believes that it has operated, and it intends to continue to operate, in such a manner to qualify as a REIT under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Internal Revenue Code”). In order to maintain qualification as a REIT, the Company must, among other things, distribute at least 90% of its REIT taxable income each year and meet asset and income tests. Additionally, its charter limits ownership of the Company, directly or constructively, by any single person to 9.8% of the value or number of shares, whichever is more restrictive, of its outstanding common stock and 9.8% of the value of the aggregate of all of its outstanding stock, subject to certain exceptions. As a REIT, the Company is not subject to federal income tax with respect to that portion of its income that is distributed currently to its stockholders.

The Company’s principal executive offices are located at 32301 Woodward Avenue, Royal Oak MI 48073 and its telephone number is (248) 737-4190. The Company’s website is www.agreerealty.com (http://www.agreerealty.com). The Company’s reports are electronically filed with or furnished to the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act and can be accessed through this site, free of charge, as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file or furnish such reports. These filings are also available on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov (http://www.sec.gov). The Company’s website also contains copies of its corporate governance guidelines and code of business conduct and ethics, as well as the charters of its audit, compensation and nominating and governance committees. The information on the Company’s website is not part of this report.

Recent Developments

For a discussion of business developments that occurred in 2023, see “Item 7 – Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” later in this report. Certain summarized highlights are contained below.

Investments and Disposition Activity

During 2023, the Company completed approximately $1.28 billion of investments in net leased retail real estate. Total investment volume includes the acquisition of 282 properties for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $1.19 billion, and the completed development of 21 properties for an aggregate cost of approximately $86.2 million. These 303 properties are net leased to tenants operating in 27 sectors and are located in 40 states. These assets are 100% leased for a weighted average lease term of approximately 11.4 years.

During 2023, the Company sold six assets, including one former corporate headquarters office building, for net proceeds of $13.8 million.

Leasing

During 2023, excluding properties that were sold, the Company executed new leases, extensions or options on approximately 1,873,000 square feet of GLA throughout its portfolio. The annualized base contractual rent associated with these new leases, extensions or options is approximately $15.8 million.

Dividends

The Company increased its monthly dividend per common share from $0.24 to $0.243 in April 2023 and further increased the monthly dividend per common share to $0.247 in October 2023.

The December 2023 dividend per share of $0.247 represents an annualized dividend of $2.964 per share and an annualized dividend yield of approximately 4.7% based on the last reported sales price of our common stock listed on the NYSE of $62.95 on December 29, 2023.

The Company has routinely paid cash dividends to our common shareholders. Common cash dividends were paid quarterly for 107 consecutive quarters between 1994 and 2020 prior to moving to monthly common cash dividends in 2021. We have since paid 37 consecutive monthly dividends. Although we expect to continue our policy of paying regular dividends, we cannot guarantee that we will maintain our current level of common dividends, that we will continue our recent pattern of increasing dividends per share or what our actual dividend yield will be in any future period.

In addition to its common dividends, the Company paid monthly cash dividends on its 4.25% Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock.

Financing

Equity

In September 2022, the Company entered into a $750 million at-the-market (“ATM”) program (the “2022 ATM Program”) through which the Company, from time to time, may sell shares of common stock and/or enter into forward sale agreements.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company completed forward sale agreements under the 2022 ATM Program for 10,197,230 shares of common stock, for anticipated future net proceeds of $669.1 million, after deducting fees and expenses. The Company has settled 6,363,359 shares of these forward sale agreements as of December 31, 2023 for net proceeds of approximately $433.4 million, after deducting fees and expenses. The Company is required to settle the remaining forward agreements by January 2025.

The Company had approximately $75.8 million of availability remaining under the 2022 ATM Program as of December 31, 2023.

Debt

In July 2023, the Company closed on an unsecured $350 million 5.5-year term loan (the “2029 Unsecured Term Loan”) which includes an accordion option that allows the Company to request additional lender commitments up to a total of $500 million and matures in January 2029. Borrowings under the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan are priced at SOFR plus a spread of 80 to 160 basis points over SOFR, depending on the Company’s credit ratings, plus a SOFR adjustment of 10 basis points. Based on the Company’s credit ratings at the time of closing, pricing on the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan was 95 basis points over SOFR. The Company used the existing $350 million of forward starting interest rate swaps to hedge the variable SOFR priced interest to a weighted average fixed rate of 3.57% until January 2029.

Business Strategies

Our primary business objectives are to capitalize on distinct market positioning in the retail net lease space, focus on 21st century industry-leading retailers through our external growth platforms, leverage our real estate acumen and relationships to identify superior risk-adjusted opportunities, maintain a conservative and flexible capital structure that enables growth, and provide consistent, high-quality earnings growth and a well-covered growing dividend. The following is a discussion of our investment, financing and asset management strategies.

Investment

We are primarily focused on the long-term, fee simple ownership of properties net leased to national or large, regional retailers operating in sectors we believe to be more e-commerce and recession resistant than other retail sectors. Our leases are typically long-term net leases that require the tenant to pay all property operating expenses, including real estate taxes, insurance and maintenance. We believe that a diversified portfolio of such properties provides for stable and predictable cash flow.

We seek to expand and enhance our portfolio by identifying the best risk-adjusted investment opportunities across our three external avenues for growth: development, Developer Funding Platform (“DFP”) and acquisitions.

Development: We have been developing retail properties since the formation of our predecessor company in 1971 and our development platform seeks to employ our capabilities to direct all aspects of the development process, including site selection, land acquisition, lease negotiation, due diligence, design and construction. Our developments are typically build-to-suit projects that result in fee simple ownership of the property upon completion.

Developer Funding Platform: Our DFP, previously called Partner Capital Solutions, collaborates with developers or retailers on their in-process developments. We offer construction expertise and access to capital to facilitate the successful completion of their projects. We typically take fee simple ownership of DFP projects upon completion.

Acquisitions: Our acquisitions platform expands our investment capabilities by pursuing opportunities that meet both our real estate and return on investment criteria.

We believe that development and DFP projects have the potential to generate superior risk-adjusted returns on investment in properties that are substantially similar to those we acquire.

We focus on four core principles that underlie our investment criteria:

• Omni-channel critical (e-commerce resistance), focusing on leading operators that have matured in omni-channel structure or those in e-commerce resistant sectors;
• Recession resistance, emphasizing a balanced portfolio with exposure to counter-cyclical sectors and retailers with strong credit profiles;
• Avoidance of private equity sponsorship, emphasizing leading operators with strong balance sheets and minimizing exposure to the possibility of such sponsorship overleveraging their acquisitions and reducing retailers’ abilities to invest in their businesses; and
• Adherence to strong real estate fundamentals and fungible buildings, protecting against unforeseen changes to our investment philosophies.

Each platform leverages the Company’s real estate acumen to pursue investments in net lease retail real estate. Factors that we consider when evaluating an investment include but are not limited to:

• Overall market-specific characteristics, such as demographics, market rents, competition and retail synergy;
• Asset-specific characteristics, such as the age, size, location, zoning, use and environmental history, accessibility, physical condition, signage and visibility of the property;
• Tenant-specific characteristics, including but not limited to the financial profile, operating history, business plan,

size, market positioning, geographic footprint, management team, industry and/or sector-specific trends and other characteristics specific to the tenant and parent thereof;

• Unit-level operating characteristics, including store sales performance and profitability, if available;
• Lease-specific terms, including term of the lease, rent to be paid by the tenant and other tenancy considerations; and
• Transaction considerations, such as purchase price, seller profile and other non-financial terms.

Financing

We seek to maintain a capital structure that provides us with the flexibility to manage our business and pursue our growth strategies, while allowing us to service our debt requirements and generate appropriate risk-adjusted returns for our stockholders. We believe these objectives are best achieved by a capital structure that consists primarily of common equity and prudent amounts of preferred equity and debt financing. However, we may raise capital in any form and under terms that we deem acceptable and in the best interest of our stockholders.

We have previously utilized common and preferred stock equity offerings, secured mortgage borrowings, unsecured bank borrowings, private placements and public offerings of senior unsecured notes and the sale of properties to meet our capital requirements. We continually evaluate our financing policies on an on-going basis in light of current economic conditions, access to various capital markets, relative costs of equity and debt securities, the market value of our properties and other factors.

We occasionally sell common stock through forward sale agreements, enabling the Company to set the price of shares upon pricing the offering while delaying the issuance of shares and the receipt of the net proceeds by the Company.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company’s ratio of total debt to enterprise value, assuming the conversion of common limited partnership interests in the Operating Partnership (“Operating Partnership Common Units”) into shares of common stock, was approximately 27.2%, and its ratio of total debt to total gross assets (before accumulated depreciation) was approximately 29.6%.

As of December 31, 2023, our total debt outstanding before deferred financing costs and original issue discount was $2.43 billion, including $44.9 million of secured mortgage debt that had a weighted average fixed interest rate of 3.78% and a weighted average maturity of 5.8 years, $2.16 billion of unsecured borrowings, which includes $350.0 million of unsecured term loans and $1.81 billion of unsecured notes, that had a weighted average fixed interest rate of 3.50% (including the effects of interest rate swap agreements) and a weighted average maturity of 6.5 years, and $227.0 million of floating rate borrowings under our revolving credit facility at a weighted average interest rate of approximately 6.27%.

Certain financial agreements to which the Company is a party contain covenants that limit its ability to incur debt under certain circumstances; however, our organizational documents do not limit the absolute amount or percentage of indebtedness that we may incur. As such, we may modify our borrowing policies at any time without stockholder approval.

Asset Management

We maintain a proactive leasing and capital improvement program that, combined with the quality and locations of our properties, has made our properties attractive to tenants. We intend to continue to hold our properties for long-term investment and, accordingly, place a strong emphasis on the quality of construction and an on-going program of regular and preventative maintenance. Our properties are designed and built to require minimal capital improvements other than renovations or alterations, typically paid for by tenants. Personnel from our corporate headquarters conduct regular inspections of each property, maintain regular contact with major tenants and engage in consistent dialogue to understand store performance and tenant sustainability.

We have a management information system designed to provide our management with the operating data necessary to make informed business decisions on a timely basis. This system provides us rapid access to lease data, tenants’ sales history, cash flow budgets and forecasts. Such a system helps us to maximize cash flow from operations and closely monitor corporate expenses.

Competition

The U.S. commercial real estate investment market is a highly competitive industry. We actively compete with many entities engaged in the acquisition, development and operation of commercial properties. As such, we compete with other investors for a limited supply of properties and financing for these properties. Investors include traded and non-traded public REITs, private equity firms, institutional investment funds, insurance companies and private individuals, many of which have greater financial resources than we do and the ability to accept more risk than we believe we can prudently manage. There can be no assurance that we will be able to compete successfully with such entities in our acquisition, development and leasing activities in the future.

Significant Tenants

No tenant accounted for more than 10.0% of our annualized base rent as of December 31, 2023. See “Item 2 – Properties” for additional information on our top tenants and the composition of our tenant base.

Regulation

Environmental

Investments in real property create the potential for environmental liability on the part of the owner or operator of such real property. If hazardous substances are discovered on or emanating from a property, the owner or operator of the property may under certain statutory schemes be held strictly liable for all costs and liabilities relating to such hazardous substances. We have obtained a Phase I environmental study (which involves inspection without soil sampling or ground water analysis) conducted by independent environmental consultants on each of our properties and, in certain instances, have conducted additional investigation, including Phase II environmental assessments.

We have no knowledge of any hazardous substances existing on our properties in violation of any applicable laws; however, no assurance can be given that such substances are not currently located on any of our properties.

We believe that we are in compliance, in all material respects, with all federal, state and local ordinances and regulations regarding hazardous or toxic substances. Furthermore, we have not received notice from any governmental authority of any noncompliance, liability or other claim in connection with any of our properties.

Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

Our properties, as commercial facilities, are required to comply with Title III of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and similar state and local laws and regulations (collectively, the “ADA”). Investigation of a property may reveal non-compliance with the ADA. Our tenants will typically have primary responsibility for complying with the ADA, but we may incur costs if the tenant does not comply. As of December 31, 2023, we have not received notice from any governmental authority, nor are we otherwise aware, of any non-compliance with the ADA that we believe would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position or results of operations.

Human Capital

Team Members and Values

As of December 31, 2023, the Company had 72 full-time team members covering acquisitions, development, legal, asset management, accounting, finance, administrative, and executive functions as compared to 76 full-time team members as of December 31, 2022.

Our core values are the foundation of our Company culture and include:

• We All Do the Dishes - We are a team. We all roll up our sleeves and dig in, no matter the task.
• Brick by Brick - We achieve results by making consistent, disciplined decisions.
• Greatness Requires Grit - We have a resilient mindset to achieve and exceed our goals.
• Punch Your Ticket - We push ourselves to be the best we can at our position and embrace the opportunities that new challenges present.

We work to attract the best talent externally to meet the current and future demands of our business. We utilize social media, professional recruiters and other organizations to find motivated and talented team members and employ competency-based behavioral interviewing techniques.

Talent Management

Professional development is a cornerstone of our talent management system, and we diligently work to develop talent from within. We emphasize professional development through both technical and soft-skill development and training. To empower team members to reach their potential, the Company provides a range of on-the-job training and mentoring, knowledge sharing, continuing education and “lunch-and-learn” programs. Our talent management practices include the utilization of our core competency frameworks, professional development plans, career pathing and succession planning and carefully designed promotion and internal mobility opportunities.

Our team members’ goal setting and performance feedback processes include formal quarterly and annual reviews and self and team leader reviews, as well as ongoing one-on-one meetings with team leaders. Professional development plans based on critical core competencies are created and monitored to ensure progress is made along established timelines.

Financial and Health Wellness

As part of our compensation philosophy, we offer and maintain market competitive total rewards programs for team members in order to attract and retain superior talent. These programs not only include wages and incentives, but also health, welfare, and retirement benefits.

Our compensation philosophies include:

• Total compensation that is both fair and competitive. The Company seeks fairness in total compensation with reference to external and internal comparisons.
• Attract, retain and motivate team members. Compensation is used to achieve business objectives by attracting, retaining and motivating top talent.
• Reward superior individual and Company performance on both a short-term and long-term basis. Performance-based pay aligns the interests of management with the interests of our stockholders and motivates and rewards individual efforts and company success.
• Align executives’ and team members’ long-term interests with those of our stockholders. The Company seeks to align these interests by providing a significant portion of executive officer compensation in the form of restricted common stock. In addition, all team members are eligible to receive a portion of compensation in the form of restricted common stock.

The structure of our compensation programs balance incentive earnings for both short-term and long-term performance. Specifically, the programs include a base salary, incentive compensation through annual cash bonuses and equity participation, and a retirement plan with Company match.

The “Agree Wellness Program” affords team members paid time off and holidays, fully equipped on-site fitness amenities, and leaves of absence for specified events. Insurance coverages are provided for all team members and their dependents, including medical, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance. The Company pays 100% of medical, short-term, long-term, and life insurance premiums for team members and their families.

Environmental, Social and Governance (“ESG”)

As part of the Company’s commitment to continuously improving our understanding of and performance across material ESG topics, the Company engaged a third-party consultant since 2022 to help identify opportunities for improvement across our programs, policies, and disclosures to meet the expectations of our stakeholders. The Company executed an ongoing sustainability and ESG strategy to enhance our oversight structure, risk management, policies, data collection, reporting, and stakeholder engagement. Additionally, the Company received Gold Level recognition from Green Lease Leaders.

Environmental Sustainability

We understand that environmental sustainability is an ongoing endeavor and embrace the responsibility to be a steward of the environment, use natural resources carefully, and work with our retail partners on shared sustainability initiatives. We remain committed to using our time, talents, resources, and relationships to grow in a manner that makes the world and the environment better for future generations.

Our focus on industry-leading, national and super-regional retailers provides for long-term relationships with many environmentally conscientious retailers. This is particularly meaningful because the Company’s portfolio is primarily comprised of properties that are leased to tenants under long-term net leases where the tenant is generally responsible for maintaining the property and implementing environmentally responsible practices.

In 2023, we engaged with our retail partners on shared sustainability initiatives at our properties, and executing green leases with various tenants, as well as systematically monitoring ESG policies for current and prospective tenants. We will continue working with our tenants and consultant to update our greenhouse gas emissions inventory.

Social Company Culture and Team Members

The Agree Wellness Program focuses on physical and financial wellness to enhance team members’ well-being. The Company believes that team members who are healthy, fit, financially secure and motivated are team members who achieve personal and professional success. Ongoing professional development is offered to help all team members advance their careers. The Company regularly sponsors local charities and has received numerous local awards recognizing its outstanding corporate culture and wellness initiatives. The Company supports healthy living through enhanced health insurance, an on-site gym, training and education, various complementary meal programs and many other benefits.

We support team members with generous cash compensation plans, equity ownership programs, retirement plans and ongoing access to financial planning resources. Team members are compensated for their performance and rewarded for their outstanding work. Alignment of individual, team, corporate and stockholder objectives provides for continuity, teamwork and increased collaboration. Our team members are paid commensurate with their qualifications, responsibilities, productivity, quality of work and adherence to our core values.

The Agree Culture Committee is composed of team members from departments throughout the organization. The Company’s Culture Committee hosts a variety of events that are focused on team building and camaraderie as well as contributing to the communities in which they live.

Governance Fiduciary Duties and Ethics

We believe that nothing is more important than a company’s reputation for integrity and serving as a responsible fiduciary for its stockholders. We are committed to managing the Company for the benefit of our stockholders and are focused on maintaining good corporate governance.

Our board of directors has 10 directors, eight of whom are independent, including the Company’s new independent director added in 2024. Six new independent directors have been added since 2018. Independent directors meet regularly, without the presence of officers or team members. A Lead Independent Director was appointed in 2019.

The board of directors has adopted an insider trading policy that applies to all directors, officers and team members. The Company does not have a stockholder rights plan (“poison pill”) and maintains stock ownership guidelines for directors and named executive officers requiring specified levels of stock ownership. Time-vested stock grants to officers and team members vest over a three-year period to provide long-term alignment, while performance-based stock grants to named executive officers utilize total shareholder return, with the amount of the grants intended to increase as total returns to stockholders increase, further enhancing alignment. Our board of directors has established a succession plan for the Chief Executive Officer to cover emergencies and other occurrences. Finally, the Company annually submits “say-on-pay” advisory votes to its stockholders.

Available Information

We make available free of charge through our website at www.agreerealty.com (http://www.agreerealty.com) all reports we electronically file with, or furnish to, the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q and current reports on Form 8-K, as well as any amendments to those reports, as soon as reasonably practicable after those documents are filed with, or furnished to, the SEC. These filings are also accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov (http://www.sec.gov).

The following factors and other factors discussed in this Annual Report on Form 10-K could cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking statements made in this report or presented elsewhere in future SEC reports. You should carefully consider each of the risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors described below and elsewhere in this report, as well as any reports, amendments or updates reflected in subsequent filings or furnishings with the SEC. We believe these risks, assumptions, uncertainties and other factors, individually or in the aggregate, could cause our actual results to differ materially from expected and historical results and could materially and adversely affect our business operations, results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

Risks Related to Our Business and Operations

Economic and financial conditions may have a negative effect on our business and operations.

Changes in global or national economic conditions, such as the global economic and financial market downturn, rising tensions between China and Taiwan and the conflicts in Ukraine and in the Middle East, may cause or continue to cause, among other things, tightening in the credit markets, lower levels of liquidity, increases in the rate of default and bankruptcy and lower consumer spending and business spending, which could adversely affect our business and operations. For example, the current and continued macro-economic conditions of high inflation and increased interest rates have increased the costs associated with acquiring new properties and decreased the availability of financing on terms that we find acceptable, which has reduced our ability to acquire properties at our historical rate with attractive terms. Potential consequences of changes in economic and financial conditions include:

• Changes in the performance of our tenants, which may result in lower rent and lower recoverable expenses that the tenant can afford to pay and tenant defaults under the leases;
• Current or potential tenants may delay or postpone entering into long-term net leases with us;
• The ability to borrow on terms and conditions that we find acceptable may be limited or unavailable, which could reduce our ability to pursue acquisition and development opportunities and refinance existing debt, reduce our returns from acquisition and development activities, reduce our ability to make cash distributions to our stockholders and increase our future interest expense;
• Our ability to access the capital markets may be restricted at a time when we would like, or need, to access those markets, which could have an impact on our flexibility to react to changing economic and business conditions;
• The recognition of impairment charges on or reduced values of our properties, which may adversely affect our results of operations or limit our ability to dispose of assets at attractive prices and may reduce the availability of buyer financing; and
• One or more lenders under our revolving credit facility could fail and we may not be able to replace the financing commitment of any such lenders on favorable terms, or at all.

We are also limited in our ability to reduce costs to offset the results of a prolonged or severe economic downturn given certain fixed costs and commitments associated with our operations, which could materially impact our results of operations and/or financial condition.

Our business is significantly dependent on single tenant properties.

We focus our development and investment activities on ownership of real properties that are primarily net leased to a single tenant. Therefore, the financial failure of, or other default in payment by, a single tenant under its lease and the potential resulting vacancy is likely to cause a significant reduction in our operating cash flows from that property and a significant reduction in the value of the property and could cause a significant impairment loss. In addition, we would be responsible for all of the operating costs of a property following a vacancy at a single tenant building. Because our properties have generally been built to suit a particular tenant’s specific needs and desires, we may also incur significant losses to make the leased premises ready for another tenant and experience difficulty or a significant delay in releasing such property.

Bankruptcy laws will limit our remedies if a tenant becomes bankrupt and rejects its leases.

If a tenant becomes bankrupt or insolvent, that could diminish the income we receive from that tenant’s leases. We may not be able to evict a tenant solely because of its bankruptcy. On the other hand, a bankruptcy court might authorize the tenant to terminate its leasehold with us. If that happens, our claim against the bankrupt tenant for unpaid future rent would be an unsecured claim subject to statutory limitations, and therefore any amounts received in bankruptcy are likely to be substantially less valuable than the remaining rent we otherwise were owed under the leases. In addition, any payment on a claim we have for unpaid past rent could be substantially less than the amount owed.

Our portfolio is concentrated in certain states, which makes us more susceptible to adverse events in these areas.

Our properties are located in 49 states throughout the United States and in particular, the state of Texas (where 143 properties out of 2,135 properties are located, or 7.2% of our annualized base rent was derived as of December 31, 2023), Florida (137 properties, or 6.1% of our annualized base rent), Illinois (124 properties, or 5.5% of our annualized base rent), North Carolina (127 properties, or 5.5% of our annualized base rent), and Ohio (133 properties, or 5.3% of our annualized rent). An economic downturn or other adverse events or conditions such as natural disasters in any of these areas, or any other area where we may have significant concentration in the future, could result in a material reduction of our cash flows or material losses to our company.

Our tenants are concentrated in certain retail sectors, which makes us susceptible to adverse conditions impacting these sectors.

As of December 31, 2023, 9.6%, 8.7% and 8.6% of our annualized contractual base rent and interest were derived from tenants operating in the grocery store, home improvement, and tire and auto service sectors, respectively. Similarly, we have concentrations in other sectors such as dollar stores, convenience stores, and general merchandise. Any decrease in consumer demand for the products and services offered by our tenants operating in any industries for which we have concentrations could have an adverse effect on our tenants’ revenues, costs and results of operations, thereby adversely affecting their ability to meet their lease obligations to us. As we continue to invest in properties, our portfolio may become more or less concentrated by industry sector.

There are risks associated with our development and acquisition activities.

We intend to continue the development of new properties and to consider possible acquisitions of existing properties. We anticipate that our new developments will be financed under the revolving credit facility or other forms of financing that will result in a risk that permanent fixed rate financing on newly developed projects might not be available or would be available only on disadvantageous terms. In addition, new project development is subject to a number of risks, including risks of construction delays or cost overruns that may increase anticipated project costs. Furthermore, new project commencement risks also include receipt of zoning, occupancy, other required governmental permits and authorizations and the incurrence of development costs in connection with projects that are not pursued to completion. If permanent debt or equity financing is not available on acceptable terms to finance new development or acquisitions undertaken without permanent financing, further development activities or acquisitions might be curtailed, or cash available for distribution might be adversely affected. Acquisitions entail risks that investments will fail to perform in accordance with expectations, as well as general investment risks associated with any new real estate investment.

Loss of revenues from tenants would reduce the Company’s cash flow.

Our tenants encounter significant macroeconomic, governmental and competitive forces. Beginning in 2022, in an effort to combat inflation and restore price stability, the Federal Reserve significantly raised its benchmark federal funds rate, which led to increases in interest rates in the credit markets. The Federal Reserve may continue to raise the federal funds rate, which will likely lead to higher interest rates in the credit markets and the possibility of slowing economic growth and/or a recession. Additionally, U.S. government policies implemented to address inflation, including actions by the Federal Reserve to increase interest rates, could negatively impact consumer spending and adversely impact the broader economy. Adverse changes in consumer spending or consumer preferences for particular goods, services or store-based retailing could severely impact their ability to pay rent. Shifts from in-store to online shopping could increase due to changing consumer shopping patterns as well as the increase in consumer adoption and use of mobile electronic devices. This expansion of e-commerce could have an adverse impact on our tenant’s ongoing viability. The default, financial distress, bankruptcy or liquidation of one or more of our tenants could cause substantial vacancies in our property portfolio or impact our tenants’ ability to pay rent. Vacancies reduce our revenues, increase property expenses and could decrease the value of each vacant property. Upon the expiration of a lease, the tenant may choose not to renew the lease, renegotiate the economics of any option period(s) as a condition of exercising one or more of them, and/or we may not be able to release the vacant property at a comparable lease rate or without incurring additional expenditures in connection with such renewal or re-leasing. These risks could be exacerbated by a deterioration in the financial condition of any major tenant with leases in multiple locations.

The availability and timing of cash dividends is uncertain.

We expect to continue to pay regular dividends to our stockholders. However, we bear all expenses incurred by our operations, and our funds generated by operations, after deducting these expenses, may not be sufficient to cover desired levels of dividends to our stockholders. We cannot assure our stockholders that sufficient funds will be available to pay dividends.

The decision to declare and pay dividends on our common stock in the future, as well as the timing, amount and composition of any such future dividends, will be at the sole discretion of our board of directors and will depend on our earnings, funds from operations, liquidity, financial condition, capital requirements, contractual prohibitions, or other limitations under our indebtedness, annual dividend requirements or the REIT provisions of the Internal Revenue Code, state law and such other factors as our board of directors deems relevant. Further, we may issue new shares of common stock as compensation to our team members or in connection with public offerings or acquisitions. Any future issuances may substantially increase the cash required to pay dividends at current or higher levels.

Any preferred shares we may offer may have a fixed dividend rate that would not increase with any increases in the dividend rate of our common stock. Conversely, payment of dividends on our common stock is subject to payment in full of the dividends on any preferred shares and payment of interest on any debt securities we may offer.

If we do not maintain or increase the dividend on our common stock, it could have an adverse effect on the market price of our shares.

We face risks relating to information technology and cybersecurity attacks, loss of confidential information and other business disruptions.

We rely on information technology networks and systems, including the Internet, to process, transmit and store electronic information and to manage or support a variety of our business processes and we rely on commercially available systems, software, tools and monitoring to provide infrastructure and security for processing, transmitting and storing information. Any failure, inadequacy or interruption could materially harm our business and/or damage our business relationships and our reputation. Furthermore, our business is subject to risks from and may be impacted by cybersecurity attacks or cyber intrusion, including attempts to gain unauthorized access to our confidential data and other electronic security breaches. Such cyber-attacks can range from individual attempts to gain unauthorized access to our information technology systems to more sophisticated security threats. While we employ a number of measures to prevent, detect and mitigate these threats, there is no guarantee such efforts will be successful in preventing a cyber-attack. Cybersecurity incidents could cause operational interruption, damage to our business relationships, private data exposure (including personally identifiable information, or proprietary and confidential information, of ours and our team members, as well as third parties) and affect the efficiency of our business operations. Any such incidents could result in legal claims or proceedings, liability or regulatory penalties under laws protecting the privacy of personal information and reduce the benefits of our technologies. Further, while we carry cyber liability insurance, such insurance may not be adequate to cover all losses related to such events.

Our environmental, social and governance commitments could result in additional costs, and our inability to achieve them could have an adverse impact on our reputation and performance.

From time to time, we communicate our strategies, commitments and targets related to sustainability and other environmental, social and governance matters. These strategies, commitments and targets reflect our current plans and aspirations, and we may be unable to achieve them. We may from time to time incur additional expense to meet such targets. Any failure to meet these sustainability targets could adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, standards and processes for measuring and reporting carbon emissions and other sustainability metrics may change over time, and may result in inconsistent data, or could result in significant revisions to our strategies, commitments and targets, or our ability to achieve them. Any scrutiny of our sustainability disclosures or our failure to achieve related strategies, commitments and targets could negatively impact our reputation or performance.

General Real Estate Risk

Our performance and value are subject to general economic conditions and risks associated with our real estate assets.

There are risks associated with owning and leasing real estate. Although many of our leases contain terms that obligate the tenants to bear substantially all of the costs of operating our properties, investing in real estate involves a number of risks. Income from and the value of our properties may be adversely affected by:

• Changes in general or local economic conditions;
• The attractiveness of our properties to potential tenants;
• Changes in supply of or demand for similar or competing properties in an area;
• Bankruptcies, financial difficulties or lease defaults by our tenants;
• Changes in operating costs and expense and our ability to control rents;
• Our ability to lease properties at favorable rental rates;
• Our ability to sell a property when we desire to do so at a favorable price;
• Property damage or casualty loss;
• Impacts of climate change;
• The potential risk of functional obsolescence of properties over time;
• Changes in or increased costs of compliance with governmental rules, regulations and fiscal policies, including changes in the ADA and similar regulations and tax, real estate, environmental and zoning laws, and our potential liability thereunder.

Economic and financial market conditions have and may continue to exacerbate many of the foregoing risks. If a tenant fails to perform on its lease covenants, that would not excuse us from meeting any mortgage debt obligation secured by the property and could require us to fund reserves in favor of our mortgage lenders, thereby reducing funds available for payment of cash dividends on our shares of common stock.

The fact that real estate investments are relatively illiquid may reduce economic returns to investors.

We may desire to sell a property in the future because of changes in market conditions or poor tenant performance or to avail ourselves of other opportunities. We may also be required to sell a property in the future to meet secured debt obligations or to avoid a secured debt loan default. Real estate properties cannot generally be sold quickly, and we cannot assure you that we could always obtain a favorable price. We may be required to invest in the restoration or modification of a property before we can sell it, or we may need to obtain landlord consent to sell certain assets in which we have a leasehold interest in the land underlying the buildings. This lack of liquidity may limit our ability to vary our portfolio promptly in response to changes in economic or other conditions and, as a result, could adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and our ability to pay dividends on our common stock.

Our ability to renew leases or re-lease space on favorable terms as leases expire significantly affects our business.

We are subject to the risks that, upon expiration of leases for space located in our properties, the premises may not be re-let or the terms of re-letting (including the cost of concessions to tenants) may be less favorable than current lease terms. If a tenant does not renew its lease or if a tenant defaults on its lease obligations, there is no assurance we could obtain a substitute tenant on acceptable terms. If we cannot obtain another tenant with comparable building structural space and configuration needs, we may be required to modify the property for a different use, which may involve a significant capital expenditure and a delay in re-leasing the property. Further, if we are unable to re-let promptly all or a substantial portion of our retail space or if the rental rates upon such re-letting were significantly lower than expected rates, our net income and ability to make expected distributions to stockholders would be adversely affected. There can be no assurance that we will be able to retain tenants in any of our properties upon the expiration of their leases.

Our leases contain certain limitations on tenants’ real estate tax, insurance and operating cost reimbursement obligations.

Our tenants under net leases generally are responsible for paying the real estate taxes, insurance costs and operating costs associated with the leased property. However, certain leases contain limitations on the tenant’s cost reimbursement obligations and, therefore, there are costs which may be incurred and which will not be reimbursed in full by tenants. This could reduce our operating cash flows from those properties and could reduce the value of those properties.

Potential liability for environmental contamination could result in substantial costs.

Under federal, state and local environmental laws, we may be required to investigate and clean up any release of hazardous or toxic substances or petroleum products at our properties, regardless of our knowledge or actual responsibility, simply because of our current or past ownership or operation of the real estate. If unidentified environmental problems arise, we may have to make substantial payments, which could adversely affect our cash flow and our ability to make distributions to our stockholders. This potential liability results from the following:

• As owner, we may have to pay for property damage and for investigation and clean-up costs incurred in connection with the contamination;
• The law may impose clean-up responsibility and liability regardless of whether the owner or operator knew of or caused the contamination;
• Even if more than one person is responsible for the contamination, each person who shares legal liability under environmental laws may be held responsible for all of the clean-up costs; and
• Governmental entities and third parties may sue the owner or operator of a contaminated site for damages and costs.

These costs could be substantial and in extreme cases could exceed the value of the contaminated property. The presence of hazardous substances or petroleum products or the failure to properly remediate contamination may adversely affect our ability to borrow against, sell or lease an affected property. In addition, some environmental laws create liens on contaminated sites in favor of the government for damages and costs it incurs in connection with a contamination.

We own and may in the future acquire properties that will be operated as convenience stores with gas station facilities. The operation of convenience stores with gas station facilities at our properties will create additional environmental concerns. Similarly, we may lease properties to users or producers of other hazardous materials. We require that the tenants who operate these facilities do so in material compliance with current laws and regulations.

A majority of our leases require our tenants to comply with environmental laws and to indemnify us against environmental liability arising from the operation of the properties. However, we could be subject to strict liability under environmental laws because we own the properties. There are certain losses, including losses from environmental liabilities, that are not generally insured against or that are not generally fully insured against because it is not deemed economically feasible or prudent to do so. There is also a risk that tenants may not satisfy their environmental compliance and indemnification obligations under the leases. Any of these events could substantially increase our cost of operations, require us to fund environmental indemnities in favor of our secured lenders and reduce our ability to service our secured debt and pay dividends to stockholders and any debt security interest payments. Environmental problems at any properties could also put us in default under loans secured by those properties, as well as loans secured by unaffected properties.

Uninsured losses relating to real property may adversely affect our returns.

Our leases generally require tenants to carry comprehensive liability and extended coverage insurance on our properties. However, there are certain losses, including losses from environmental liabilities, terrorist acts or catastrophic acts of nature, that are not generally insured against or that are not generally fully insured against because it is not deemed economically feasible or prudent to do so. If there is an uninsured loss or a loss in excess of insurance limits, we could lose both the revenues generated by the affected property and the capital we have invested in the property. Inflation, changes in building codes and ordinances, environmental considerations and other factors might also keep us from using insurance proceeds to replace or renovate an affected property after it has been damaged or destroyed. Under those circumstances, the insurance proceeds we receive might be inadequate to restore our economic position on the damaged or destroyed property. In the event of a substantial unreimbursed loss, we would remain obligated to repay any mortgage indebtedness or other obligations related to the property.

It has generally become more difficult and expensive to obtain property insurance, including coverage for terrorism. When our current insurance policies expire, we may encounter difficulty in obtaining or renewing property insurance on our properties at the same levels of coverage and under similar terms. Such insurance may be more limited and for some catastrophic risks (for example, earthquake, flood and terrorism) may not be generally available at current levels. Even if we are able to renew our policies or to obtain new policies at levels and with limitations consistent with our current policies, we cannot be sure that we will be able to obtain such insurance at premium rates that are commercially reasonable.

If we were unable to obtain adequate insurance on our properties for certain risks, it could cause us to be in default under specific covenants on certain of our indebtedness or other contractual commitments that require us to maintain adequate insurance to protect against the risk of loss. If this were to occur, or if we were unable to obtain adequate insurance and our properties experience damage which would otherwise have been covered by insurance, it could materially and adversely affect our financial condition and the operations of our properties.

Risks Related to Our Debt Financings

Our level of indebtedness could materially and adversely affect our financial position, including reducing funds available for other business purposes and reducing our operational flexibility, and we may have future capital needs and may not be able to obtain additional financing on acceptable terms.

At December 31, 2023, our ratio of total debt to enterprise value (assuming conversion of Operating Partnership Common Units into shares of common stock) was approximately 27.2%. Incurring substantial debt may adversely affect our business and operating results by:

• Requiring us to use a substantial portion of our cash flow to pay interest and principal, which reduces the amount available for distributions, acquisitions and capital expenditures;
• Making us more vulnerable to economic and industry downturns and reducing our flexibility to respond to changing business and economic conditions;
• Requiring us to agree to less favorable terms, including higher interest rates, in order to incur additional debt, and otherwise limiting our ability to borrow for operations, working capital or to finance acquisitions in the future; or
• Limiting our flexibility in conducting our business, including our ability to finance or refinance our assets, contribute assets to joint ventures or sell assets as needed, which may place us at a disadvantage compared to competitors with less debt or debt with less restrictive terms.

In addition, the use of leverage presents an additional element of risk in the event that (1) the cash flow from lease payments on our properties is insufficient to meet debt obligations, (2) we are unable to refinance our debt obligations as necessary or on as favorable terms, (3) there is an increase in interest rates, (4) we default on our financial obligations or (5) debt service requirements increase. If a property is mortgaged to secure payment of indebtedness and we are unable to meet mortgage payments, the property could be foreclosed upon with a consequential loss of income and asset value to us.

We generally intend to maintain a ratio of total indebtedness (including construction or acquisition financing) to total market capitalization of 65% or less. Nevertheless, we may operate with debt levels which are in excess of 65% of total market capitalization for extended periods of time. If our debt capitalization policy were changed, we could become more highly leveraged, resulting in an increase in debt service that could adversely affect our operating cash flow and our ability to make expected distributions to stockholders, and could result in an increased risk of default on our obligations.

Covenants in our credit agreements and note purchase agreements could limit our flexibility and adversely affect our financial condition.

The terms of the financing agreements and other indebtedness require us to comply with a number of customary financial and other covenants. These covenants may limit our flexibility in our operations, and breaches of these covenants could result in defaults under the instruments governing the applicable indebtedness even if we have satisfied our payment obligations. Our financing agreements contain certain cross-default provisions which could be triggered in the event that we default on our other indebtedness. These cross-default provisions may require us to repay or restructure the revolving credit facility in addition to any mortgage or other debt that is in default. If our properties were foreclosed upon, or if we are unable to refinance our indebtedness at maturity or meet our payment obligations, the amount of our distributable cash flows and our financial condition would be adversely affected.

Our unsecured revolving credit facility, certain term loan agreements and certain note purchase agreements contain various restrictive corporate covenants, including a maximum total leverage ratio, a maximum secured leverage ratio and a minimum fixed charge coverage ratio. In addition, our unsecured revolving credit facility, certain term loan agreements and certain note purchase agreements have unencumbered pool covenants, which include a maximum unencumbered leverage ratio and a minimum unencumbered interest coverage ratio. These covenants may restrict our ability to pursue certain business initiatives or certain transactions that might otherwise be advantageous. Furthermore, failure to meet certain of these financial covenants could cause an event of default under and/or accelerate some or all of such indebtedness which could have a material adverse effect on us.

An increase in market interest rates could raise our interest costs on existing and future debt or adversely affect our stock price, and a decrease in interest rates may lead to additional competition for the acquisition of real estate or adversely affect our results of operations.

Our interest costs for any new debt and our current debt obligations may rise if interest rates increase. This increased cost could make the financing of any new acquisition more expensive as well as lower our current period earnings. For example, the increase in interest rates has led to an increase in our cost of capital, resulting in requiring acquisition opportunities to have higher investment yields to achieve our investment goals and objectives. Rising interest rates could limit our ability to refinance existing debt when it matures or cause us to pay higher interest rates upon refinancing. In addition, an increase in interest rates could decrease the access third parties have to credit, thereby decreasing the amount they are willing to pay to lease our assets and limit our ability to reposition our portfolio promptly in response to changes in economic or other conditions. An increase in market interest rates may lead prospective purchasers of our common stock to expect a higher dividend yield, which could adversely affect the market price of our common stock. Decreases in interest rates may lead to additional competition for the acquisition of real estate due to a reduction in desirable alternative income-producing investments. Increased competition for the acquisition of real estate may lead to a decrease in the yields on real estate targeted for acquisition. In such circumstances, if we are not able to offset the decrease in yields by obtaining lower interest costs on our borrowings, our results of operations may be adversely affected.

Our hedging strategies may not be successful in mitigating our risks associated with interest rates and could reduce the overall returns on your investment.

We use various derivative financial instruments to provide a level of protection against interest rate risks, but no hedging strategy can protect us completely. These instruments involve risks, such as the risk that the counterparties may fail to honor their obligations under these arrangements, that these arrangements may not be effective in reducing our exposure to interest rate changes, that a court could rule that such agreements are not legally enforceable, and that we may have to post collateral to enter into hedging transactions, which we may lose if we are unable to honor our obligations. These instruments may also generate income that may not be treated as qualifying REIT income for purposes of the REIT income tests. In addition, the nature and timing of hedging transactions may influence the effectiveness of our hedging strategies. Poorly designed strategies or improperly executed transactions could actually increase our risk and losses. Moreover, hedging strategies involve transaction and other costs. We cannot assure you that our hedging strategy and the derivatives that we use will adequately offset the risk of interest rate volatility or that our hedging transactions will not result in losses that may reduce the overall return on your investment.

Future offerings of debt and equity may not be available to us or may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

We expect to continue to increase our capital resources by making additional offerings of equity and debt securities in the future, which could include classes or series of preferred stock, common stock and senior or subordinated notes. Our ability to raise additional capital may be restricted at a time when we would like or need, including as a result of market conditions. Future market dislocations could cause us to seek sources of potentially less attractive capital and impact our flexibility to react to changing economic and business conditions. All debt securities and other borrowings, as well as all classes or series of preferred stock, will be senior to our common stock in a liquidation of our company. Additional equity offerings could dilute our stockholders’ equity and reduce the market price of shares of our common stock. In addition, depending on the terms and pricing of an additional offering of our common stock and the value of our properties, our stockholders may experience dilution in both the book value and fair value of their shares. The market price of our common stock could decline as a result of sales of a large number of shares of our common stock in the market after an offering or the perception that such sales could occur, and this could materially and adversely affect our ability to raise capital through future offerings of equity or equity-related securities. In addition, we may issue preferred stock or other securities convertible into equity securities with a distribution preference or a liquidation preference that may limit our ability to make distributions on our common stock. Our ability to estimate the amount, timing or nature of additional offerings is limited as these factors will depend upon market conditions and other factors.

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure

Our charter, bylaws and Maryland law contain provisions that may delay, defer or prevent a change of control transaction.

Our charter contains 9.8% ownership limits. Our charter, subject to certain exceptions, authorizes our directors to take such actions as are necessary and desirable to preserve our qualification as a REIT and contains provisions that limit any person to actual or constructive ownership of no more than 9.8% (in value or in number of shares, whichever is more restrictive) of the outstanding shares of our common stock and no more than 9.8% (in value) of the aggregate of the outstanding shares of all classes and series of our stock. Our board of directors, in its sole discretion, may exempt, subject to the satisfaction of certain conditions, any person from the ownership limits. These restrictions on transferability and ownership will not apply if our board of directors determines that it is no longer in our best interests to attempt to qualify, or to continue to qualify, as a REIT. The ownership limits may delay or impede, and we may use the ownership limits deliberately to delay or impede, a transaction or a change of control that might involve a premium price for our common stock or otherwise be in the best interest of our stockholders.

We have a staggered board. Our directors are divided into three classes serving three-year staggered terms. The staggering of our board of directors may discourage offers for the Company or make an acquisition more difficult, even when an acquisition may be viewed to be in the best interest of our stockholders.

We could issue stock without stockholder approval. Our board of directors could, without stockholder approval, issue authorized but unissued shares of our common stock or preferred stock. In addition, our board of directors could, without stockholder approval, classify or reclassify any unissued shares of our common stock or preferred stock and set the preferences, rights and other terms of such classified or reclassified shares. Our board of directors could establish a series of stock that could, depending on the terms of such series, delay, defer or prevent a transaction or change of control that might involve a premium price for our common stock or otherwise be viewed to be in the best interest of our stockholders.

Provisions of Maryland law may limit the ability of a third party to acquire control of our company. Certain provisions of Maryland law may have the effect of inhibiting a third party from making a proposal to acquire us or of impeding a change of control under certain circumstances that otherwise could provide the holders of shares of our common stock with the opportunity to realize a premium over the then prevailing market price of such shares, including:

• “Business combination” provisions that, subject to limitations, prohibit certain business combinations between us and an “interested stockholder” (defined generally as any person who beneficially owns 10% or more of the voting power of our shares or an affiliate thereof) for five years after the most recent date on which the stockholder becomes an interested stockholder and thereafter would require the recommendation of our board of directors and impose special appraisal rights and special stockholder voting requirements on these combinations; and
• “Control share” provisions that provide that “control shares” of our company (defined as shares which, when aggregated with other shares controlled by the stockholder, entitle the stockholder to exercise one of three increasing ranges of voting power in electing directors) acquired in a “control share acquisition” (defined as the direct or indirect acquisition of ownership or control of “control shares”) have no voting rights except to the extent approved by our stockholders by the affirmative vote of at least two-thirds of all the votes entitled to be cast on the matter, excluding all interested shares.

The business combination statute permits various exemptions from its provisions, including business combinations that are approved or exempted by the board of directors before the time that the interested stockholder becomes an interested stockholder. Our board of directors has exempted from the business combination provisions of the Maryland General Corporation Law, or MGCL, any business combination with Mr. Richard Agree or any other person acting in concert or as a group with Mr. Richard Agree.

In addition, our bylaws contain a provision exempting from the control share acquisition statute Richard Agree, Edward Rosenberg, any spouses or the foregoing, any brothers or sisters of the foregoing, any ancestors of the foregoing, any other lineal descendants of any of the foregoing, any estates of any of the foregoing, any trusts established for the benefit of any of the foregoing and any other entity controlled by any of the foregoing, our other officers, our team members, any of the associates or affiliates of the foregoing and any other person acting in concert of as a group with any of the foregoing.

Additionally, Title 3, Subtitle 8 of the MGCL, permits our board of directors, without stockholder approval and regardless of what is currently provided in our charter or our bylaws, to implement certain takeover defenses. These provisions may have the effect of inhibiting a third party from making an acquisition proposal for our company or of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control of our company under circumstances that otherwise could provide the holders of our common stock with the opportunity to realize a premium over the then-current market price.

Our charter, our bylaws, the limited partnership agreement of the Operating Partnership and Maryland law also contain other provisions that may delay, defer or prevent a transaction or a change of control that might involve a premium price for our common stock or otherwise be viewed to be in the best interest of our stockholders.

An officer and director may have interests that conflict with the interests of stockholders.

An officer and member of our board of directors owns Operating Partnership Units. This individual may have personal interests that conflict with the interests of our stockholders with respect to business decisions affecting us and the Operating Partnership, such as interests in the timing and pricing of property sales or refinancing in order to obtain favorable tax treatment.

Federal Income Tax Risks

Complying with REIT requirements may cause us to forego otherwise attractive opportunities.

To qualify as a REIT for federal income tax purposes we must continually satisfy numerous income, asset and other tests, thus having to forego investments we might otherwise make and hindering our investment performance.

Failure to qualify as a REIT could adversely affect our operations and our ability to make distributions.

We will be subject to increased taxation if we fail to qualify as a REIT for federal income tax purposes. Although we believe that we are organized and operate in such a manner so as to qualify as a REIT under the Internal Revenue Code, no assurance can be given that we will remain so qualified. Qualification as a REIT involves the application of highly technical and complex Code provisions for which there are only limited judicial or administrative interpretations. The complexity of these provisions and applicable treasury regulations is also increased in the context of a REIT that holds its assets in partnership form. The determination of various factual matters and circumstances not entirely within our control may affect our ability to qualify as a REIT. Additionally, our charter provides our board of directors with the power, under certain circumstances, to revoke or otherwise terminate our REIT election and cause us to be taxed as a regular corporation, without the approval of our stockholders. A REIT that annually distributes at least 90% of its taxable income to its stockholders generally is not taxed at the corporate level on such distributed income. We have not requested and do not plan to request a ruling from the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) that we qualify as a REIT.

If we fail to qualify as a REIT, we will face tax consequences that will substantially reduce the funds available for payment of cash dividends:

• We would not be allowed a deduction for dividends paid to stockholders in computing our taxable income and would be subject to federal income tax at regular corporate rates.
• We may be subject to increased state and local taxes.
• Unless we are entitled to relief under statutory provisions, we could not elect to be treated as a REIT for four taxable years following the year in which we failed to qualify.

In addition, if we fail to qualify as a REIT, we will no longer be required to pay dividends (other than any mandatory dividends on any preferred shares we may offer). As a result of these factors, our failure to qualify as a REIT could adversely affect the market price for our common stock.

U.S. federal tax reform legislation could affect REITs generally, the geographic markets in which we operate, our stock and our results of operations, both positively and negatively in ways that are difficult to anticipate.

Changes to the federal income tax laws are proposed regularly. Additionally, the REIT rules are constantly under review by persons involved in the legislative process and by the IRS and the U.S. Department of the Treasury, which may result in revisions to regulations and interpretations in addition to statutory changes. If enacted, certain such changes could have an adverse impact on our business and financial results. In particular, H.R. 1, which took effect for taxable years that began on or after January 1, 2018 (subject to certain exceptions), as amended by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act made many significant changes to the federal income tax laws that profoundly impacted the taxation of individuals, corporations (both regular C corporations as well as corporations that have elected to be taxed as REITs), and the taxation of taxpayers with overseas assets and operations. A number of changes that affect non-corporate taxpayers will expire at the end of 2025 unless Congress acts to extend them. These changes impact us and our stockholders in various ways, some of which are adverse or potentially adverse compared to prior law. While the IRS has issued some guidance with respect to certain of the new provisions, there are numerous interpretive issues that will require further guidance, and technical corrections legislation may be needed to clarify certain aspects of the new law and give proper effect to Congressional intent. There can be no assurance, however, that technical clarifications or further changes needed to prevent unintended or unforeseen tax consequences will be enacted by Congress. In addition, while certain elements of tax reform legislation do not impact us directly as a REIT, they could impact the geographic markets in which we operate, the tenants that populate our properties and the customers who frequent our properties in ways, both positive and negative, that are difficult to anticipate. Other legislative proposals could be enacted in the future that could affect REITs and their stockholders. Prospective investors are urged to consult their tax advisors regarding the effect of these tax law changes and any other potential tax law changes on an investment in our common stock.

Changes in tax laws may prevent us from maintaining our qualification as a REIT.

As we have previously described, we intend to maintain our qualification as a REIT for federal income tax purposes. However, this intended qualification is based on the tax laws that are currently in effect. We are unable to predict any future changes in the tax laws that would adversely affect our status as a REIT. If there is a change in the tax law that prevents us from qualifying as a REIT or that requires REITs generally to pay corporate level income taxes, we may not be able to make the same level of distributions to our stockholders.

Complying with REIT requirements may force us to liquidate or restructure otherwise attractive investments.

In order to qualify as a REIT, at least 75% of the value of our assets must consist of cash, cash items, government securities and qualified real estate assets. The remainder of our investments in securities (other than government securities, securities of TRSs and qualified real estate assets) cannot include more than 10% of the voting securities or 10% of the value of all securities, of any one issuer. In addition, in general, no more than 5% of the total value of our assets (other than government securities, securities of TRSs and qualified real estate assets) can consist of securities of any one issuer, and no more than 20% of the total value of our assets can be represented by one or more TRSs. If we fail to comply with these requirements at the end of any calendar quarter, we must correct the failure within 30 days after the end of the calendar quarter or qualify for certain statutory relief provisions to avoid losing our REIT qualification and suffering adverse tax consequences. As a result, we may be required to liquidate otherwise attractive investments.

We may have to borrow funds or sell assets to meet our distribution requirements.

Subject to some adjustments that are unique to REITs, a REIT generally must distribute 90% of its taxable income. For the purpose of determining taxable income, we may be required to accrue interest, rent and other items treated as earned for tax purposes but that we have not yet received. In addition, we may be required not to accrue as expenses for tax purposes some expenses that actually have been paid, including, for example, payments of principal on our debt, or some of our deductions might be disallowed by the IRS. As a result, we could have taxable income in excess of cash available for distribution. If this occurs, we may have to borrow funds or liquidate some of our assets in order to meet the distribution requirement applicable to a REIT.

Our ownership of and relationship with our TRSs will be limited, and a failure to comply with the limits would jeopardize our REIT status and may result in the application of a 100% excise tax.

A REIT may own up to 100% of the stock of one or more TRSs. A TRS may earn income that would not be qualifying income if earned directly by the parent REIT. Overall, no more than 20% of the value of a REIT’s assets may consist of stock or securities of one or more TRSs. A TRS will typically pay federal, state and local income tax at regular corporate rates on any income that it earns. In addition, the TRS rules impose a 100% excise tax on certain transactions between a TRS and its parent REIT that are not conducted on an arm’s-length basis. Our TRSs will pay federal, state and local income tax on their taxable income, and their after-tax net income will be available for distribution to us but will not be required to be distributed to us. There can be no assurance that we will be able to comply with the 20% limitation discussed above or to avoid application of the 100% excise tax discussed above.

Liquidation of our assets may jeopardize our REIT qualification.

To qualify as a REIT, we must comply with requirements regarding our assets and our sources of income. If we are compelled to liquidate our investments to repay obligations to our lenders, we may be unable to comply with these requirements, ultimately jeopardizing our qualification as a REIT, or we may be subject to a 100% tax on any gain if we sell assets in transactions that are considered to be “prohibited transactions,” which are explained in the risk factor below.

We may be subject to other tax liabilities even if we qualify as a REIT.

Even if we remain qualified as a REIT for federal income tax purposes, we will be required to pay certain federal, state and local taxes on our income and property. For example, we will be subject to federal income tax on any of our REIT taxable income (including capital gains) that we do not distribute annually to our stockholders. Additionally, we will be subject to a 4% nondeductible excise tax on the amount, if any, by which dividends paid by us in any calendar year are less than the sum of 85% of our ordinary income, 95% of our capital gain net income and 100% of our undistributed income from prior years. Moreover, if we have net income from “prohibited transactions,” that income will be subject to a 100% tax. In general, prohibited transactions are sales or other dispositions of property held primarily for sale to customers in the ordinary course of business. The determination as to whether a particular sale is a prohibited transaction depends on the facts and circumstances related to that sale. While we will undertake sales of assets if those assets become inconsistent with our long-term strategic or return objectives, we do not believe that those sales should be considered prohibited transactions, but there can be no assurance that the IRS would not contend otherwise. The need to avoid prohibited transactions could cause us to forego or defer sales of properties that might otherwise be in our best interest to sell.

In addition, any net taxable income earned directly by our TRSs, or through entities that are disregarded for federal income tax purposes as entities separate from our TRSs, will be subject to federal and possibly state corporate income tax. To the extent that we and our affiliates are required to pay federal, state and local taxes, we will have less cash available for distributions to our stockholders.

Dividends payable by REITs do not qualify for the reduced tax rates on dividend income from regular corporations.

The maximum federal income tax rate applicable to “qualified dividend income” payable by non-REIT corporations to certain non-corporate U.S. stockholders is generally 20% and a 3.8% Medicare tax may also apply. Dividends paid by REITs, however, generally are not eligible for the reduced rates applicable to qualified dividend income. Commencing with taxable years that began on or after January 1, 2018 and continuing through 2025, H.R. 1 temporarily reduced the effective tax rate on ordinary REIT dividends (i.e., dividends other than capital gain dividends and dividends attributable to certain qualified dividend income received by us) for U.S. holders of our common stock that are individuals, estates or trusts by permitting such holders to claim a deduction in determining their taxable income equal to 20% of any such dividends they receive. Taking into account H.R. 1’s reduction in the maximum individual federal income tax rate from 39.6% to 37%, this results in a maximum effective rate of regular income tax on ordinary REIT dividends of 29.6% through 2025 (as compared to the 20% maximum federal income tax rate applicable to qualified dividend income received from a non-REIT corporation). The more favorable rates applicable to regular corporate distributions could cause investors who are individuals to perceive investments in REITs to be relatively less attractive than investments in the stocks of non-REIT corporations that pay distributions. This could materially and adversely affect the value of the stock of REITs, including our common stock.

Complying with REIT requirements may limit our ability to hedge effectively and may cause us to incur tax liabilities.

The REIT provisions of the Internal Revenue Code substantially limit our ability to hedge our liabilities. Any income from a hedging transaction we enter into to manage risk of interest rate changes, price changes or currency fluctuations with respect to borrowings made or to be made to acquire or carry real estate assets that is clearly identified in the manner specified in the Internal Revenue Code does not constitute gross income and is not counted for purposes of income tests that apply to us as a REIT. To the extent that we enter into other types of hedging transactions, the income from those transactions is likely to be treated as non-qualifying income for purposes of the income tests. As a result of these rules, we may need to limit our use of advantageous hedging techniques or implement those hedges through a TRS. This could increase the cost of our hedging activities because our TRS would be subject to tax on gains or expose us to greater risks associated with changes in interest rates than we would otherwise want to bear. In addition, losses in our TRSs will generally not provide any tax benefit, except for being carried forward against future taxable income in the TRSs.

General Risks

Loss of our key personnel could materially impair our ability to operate successfully.

Our continued success and our ability to manage anticipated future growth depend, in large part, upon the efforts of key personnel. The loss of services of one or more members of our senior management team, or our inability to attract and retain highly qualified personnel, could adversely affect our business, diminish our investment opportunities and our relationships with lenders, business partners, existing and prospective tenants and industry personnel, which could materially and adversely affect us.

If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal controls, we may not be able to accurately report financial results, which could result in a loss of investor confidence and adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

We are required to establish and maintain internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. Internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Disclosure controls and procedures are processes designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed is communicated to management and reported in a timely manner. We cannot be certain that we will be successful in continuing to maintain adequate control over our financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. Deficiencies, including any material weakness, in our internal control over financial reporting that may occur could result in misstatements or restatements of our financial statements or a decline in the price of our securities. In addition, as our business continues to grow, and as we continue to make significant acquisitions, our internal controls will become more complex and may require significantly more resources to ensure that our disclosure controls and procedures remain effective. Moreover, the existence of any material weakness or significant deficiency in our internal controls and procedures may require management to devote significant time and incur significant expense to remediate any such material weaknesses or significant deficiencies and management may not be able to remediate any such material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in a timely manner. If we cannot provide reliable financial reports, our reputation and operating results could be materially adversely affected, which could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which in turn could result in a reduction in the trading price of our common stock.

The market price and trading volume of shares of our common stock may fluctuate or decline.

The market price and trading volume of our common stock may fluctuate widely due to various factors, including:

• Broad market fluctuations;
• Market reaction to any additional indebtedness we incur or debt or equity securities we or the Operating Partnership issue in the future;
• Additions or departures of key management personnel;
• Changes in our credit ratings;
• The financial condition, performance and prospects of our tenants;
• Changes in market interest rates; and
• The realization of any of the other risk factors presented in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Many of the factors listed above are beyond our control. Those factors may cause the market price of our common stock to decline significantly, regardless of our financial condition, results of operations and prospects. It is impossible to provide any assurance that the market price of our common stock will not fall in the future, and it may be difficult for holders to resell shares of our common stock at prices they find attractive, or at all.

An epidemic or pandemic (such as the outbreak and worldwide spread of COVID-19), and the measures that international, federal, state and local governments, agencies, law enforcement and/or health authorities implement to address it, may precipitate or materially exacerbate one or more of the other risks, and may significantly disrupt our tenants’ ability to operate their businesses and/or pay rent to us or prevent us from operating our business in the ordinary course for an extended period.

An epidemic or pandemic could have a material and adverse effect on or cause disruption to our business or financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and the market value and trading price of our securities due to, among other factors:

• A complete or partial closure of, or other operational issues at, one or more of our properties resulting from government or tenant action;
• Reduced economic activity could severely impact our tenants’ businesses, financial condition and liquidity and may cause one or more of our tenants to be unable to meet their obligations to us in full, or at all, or to otherwise seek modifications of such obligations;
• Reduced economic activity could result in a prolonged recession, which could negatively impact consumer discretionary spending;
• Difficulty accessing debt and equity capital on attractive terms, or at all, potential impacts to our credit ratings, and a prolonged severe disruption and instability in the global financial markets or deteriorations in credit and financing conditions may affect our access to capital necessary to fund business operations or address maturing liabilities on a timely basis and our tenants’ ability to fund their business operations and meet their obligations to us;
• Negative impacts to our future compliance with financial covenants of our Revolving Credit Facility and other debt agreements could result in a default and potentially an acceleration of indebtedness, which non-compliance could negatively impact our ability to make additional borrowings under our Revolving Credit Facility and pay dividends;
• Any impairment in value of our tangible or intangible assets which could be recorded as a result of weaker economic conditions;
• A decline in business activity and demand for real estate transactions could adversely affect our ability or desire to grow our portfolio of properties;
• A deterioration in our or our tenants’ ability to operate in affected areas or delays in the supply of products or services to us or our tenants from vendors that are needed for our or our tenants’ efficient operations could adversely affect our operations and those of our tenants; and
• The potential negative impact on the health of our personnel, particularly if a significant number of them are impacted, could result in a deterioration in our ability to ensure business continuity during this disruption.

The extent to a future pandemic impacts our operations and those of our tenants will depend on future developments, which are highly uncertain and cannot be predicted with confidence.

A future pandemic precludes any prediction as to the full adverse impacts on our business. Nevertheless, a future pandemic presents a material uncertainty and risk with respect to our financial condition, results of operations, cash flows and performance.

Risk Management and Strategy

Managing Material Risks & Integrated Risk Management

We have a comprehensive and systematic cybersecurity risk assessment program, which covers the identification, analysis, evaluation, and management of cybersecurity risks. The program follows a risk-based approach, which prioritizes the cybersecurity risks according to their likelihood and impact and allocates the appropriate resources and actions to mitigate these risks and leverages the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) framework.

The program is cross-functional involving the participation and input of internal stakeholders, third-party consultants and board oversight. The program is reviewed and updated on a monthly basis, or whenever there is a significant change in our environment, operations, or objectives.

Engagement and Oversight of Third-parties

We have contracted a reputable, global third-party external Security Operations Center (“SOC”) to ensure that cybersecurity processes, tools, and monitoring are operating continuously. The SOC service provides a holistic view of our security landscape using a cloud-native Security Incident & Event Management platform, removing security siloes to gain actionable insights and providing continuous 24/7 detect and response services, as well as proactively identifying threats to prevent security disruptions.

We engage the SOC on a regular basis to conduct external audits and assessments of our cybersecurity posture and performance. The SOC provides independent and objective feedback and recommendations on how to improve our cybersecurity strategy, policies, processes, and controls. The SOC also assists the Company in identifying and prioritizing the most critical and emerging cybersecurity risks and threats, and to align our cybersecurity initiatives with the best practices and standards in the industry.

We also have a robust and rigorous oversight process for managing cybersecurity risks related to our third-party service providers. The process includes,

• conducting due diligence and background checks on the potential service providers,
• verifying their cybersecurity credentials, capabilities, and track record,
• establishing clear and specific contractual terms and conditions regarding the Company’s cybersecurity expectations, obligations, and the responsibilities of the service providers, and
• monitoring and auditing the service providers’ performance, compliance, reporting and escalation procedures for any cybersecurity issues or incidents identified.

Risks from Cybersecurity Threats

While we face a variety of cybersecurity risks, such as phishing attempts, ransomware attacks, and unauthorized access attempts, such risks have not materially affected us to date, including our business strategy, results of operations or financial condition. For more information about the cybersecurity risks we face, see “Item 1A – Risk Factors - We face risks relating to information technology and cybersecurity attacks, loss of confidential information and other business disruptions.”

Governance

Board of Directors’ Oversight

Our board of directors takes an active and informed role in our risk management policies and strategies. Our executive officers, which are responsible for our day-to-day risk management practices, present to the board of directors on the material risks to our Company, including risks related to information technology and cybersecurity.

The audit committee has formal oversight responsibility for cybersecurity and is responsible for reviewing the Company’s policies and procedures with respect to cybersecurity risk assessment and risk management. As part of the board of directors and audit committee’s oversight, the Chief Information Officer (“CIO”) provides quarterly updates to the audit committee with respect to cybersecurity incidents, mitigation, and management.

Management’s Role Managing Risk

Our CIO is responsible for developing and overseeing matters related to cybersecurity and serves as the Company’s Chief Information Security Officer. The CIO reports directly to the Chief Operating Officer, who is accountable for the overall information technology and security strategy and governance of the Company.

We have a comprehensive and continuous cybersecurity training program for our employees, which aims to raise their awareness and knowledge of cybersecurity threats and challenges, and to enhance their skills and competencies in preventing and responding to the cybersecurity incidents. The program covers the Company’s cybersecurity policies, guidelines, cybersecurity best practice guidelines, cybersecurity scenarios and simulations.

In connection with improving the management of cybersecurity risk, the Company has:

• audited our systems with the help of information security consultants;
• completed ransomware simulations and enhanced our Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Plan to reflect lessons learned;
• conducted recovery simulation of our proprietary database to determine restoration timing;
• conducted penetration testing and remediated all issues identified; and
• enhanced e-mail filtering software to limit the possibility of phishing or ransomware attacks.

Monitor Cybersecurity Incidents

We have a well-defined and tested cybersecurity incident response plan, which outlines the roles and responsibilities, procedures and protocols, tools and resources, and communication and escalation channels that will be activated and implemented in the event of a cybersecurity incident. The plan aims to detect and contain the incident, analyze and assess its nature, scope, and severity, and restore and resume the normal operations and functions of the Company.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company’s portfolio consisted of 2,135 properties located in 49 states and totaling approximately 44.2 million square feet of GLA.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company’s portfolio was approximately 99.8% leased and had a weighted average remaining lease term of approximately 8.4 years. A significant majority of the Company’s properties are leased to national tenants and approximately 69.1% of our annualized base rent was derived from tenants, or parent entities thereof, with an investment grade credit rating from S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service, Fitch Ratings or National Association of Insurance Commissioners. Substantially all of our tenants are subject to net lease agreements. A net lease typically requires the tenant to be responsible for minimum monthly rent and property operating expenses including property taxes, insurance and maintenance. In addition, our tenants are typically subject to future rent increases based on fixed amounts or increases in the consumer price index and certain leases provide for additional rent calculated as a percentage of the tenants’ gross sales above a specified level.

Tenant Diversification

The following table presents annualized base rents for all tenants that generated 1.5% or greater of our total annualized base rent as of December 31, 2023:

($ in thousands)

(1) Represents annualized contractual base rent on a straight-line basis as of December 31, 2023.

(2) Includes tenants generating less than 1.5% of annualized contractual base rent.

Tenant Sector Diversification

The following table presents annualized base rents for all sectors as of December 31, 2023:

($ in thousands)

(1) Represents annualized contractual base rent on a straight-line basis as of December 31, 2023.

Geographic Diversification

The following table presents annualized base rents, by state, for our portfolio as of December 31, 2023:

($ in thousands)

(1) Represents annualized contractual base rent on a straight-line basis as of December 31, 2023.

(2) Includes states generating less than 1.5% of annualized contractual base rent.

Lease Expirations

The following table presents contractual lease expirations within the Company’s portfolio as of December 31, 2023, assuming that no tenants exercise renewal options:

($ and GLA in thousands)

(1) Represents annualized contractual base rent on a straight-line basis as of December 31, 2023.

Developments

During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company had 37 development or Developer Funding Platform projects completed or under construction, for which 16 remained under construction as of December 31, 2023. Anticipated total costs for the 16 projects are approximately $63.7 million.

From time to time, we are involved in legal proceedings in the ordinary course of business. We are not presently involved in any litigation nor, to our knowledge, is any other litigation threatened against us, other than routine litigation arising in the ordinary course of business, which is expected to be covered by our liability insurance and all of which collectively is not expected to have a material adverse effect on our liquidity, results of operations or business or financial condition.

The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements, and related notes thereto, included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and the “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking

Statements” in “Item 1A – Risk Factors” above. Also refer to “Item 7 – Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” in the Company’s previously filed Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 for additional discussion of our financial condition and results of operations, including a comparison of our results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021.

Overview

The Company is a fully integrated REIT primarily focused on the ownership, acquisition, development and management of retail properties net leased to industry leading tenants. The Company was founded in 1971 by its current Executive Chairman, Richard Agree, and its common stock was listed on the NYSE in 1994. The Company’s assets are held by, and all of its operations are conducted through, directly or indirectly, the Operating Partnership, of which the Company is the sole general partner and in which the Company held a 99.7% common interest as of December 31, 2023. Refer to Note 1*-Organization* in the Notes to the Consolidated Financial Statements in this Form 10-K for further information on the ownership structure. Under the agreement of limited partnership of the Operating Partnership, the Company, as the sole general partner, has exclusive responsibility and discretion in the management and control of the Operating Partnership.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company’s portfolio consisted of 2,135 properties located in 49 states and totaling approximately 44.2 million square feet of GLA. The portfolio was approximately 99.8% leased and had a weighted average remaining lease term of approximately 8.4 years. A significant majority of the Company’s properties are leased to national tenants and approximately 69.1% of our annualized base rent was derived from tenants, or parent entities thereof, with an investment grade credit rating from S&P Global Ratings, Moody’s Investors Service, Fitch Ratings or the National Association of Insurance Commissioners. A net lease typically requires the tenant to be responsible for minimum monthly rent and property operating expenses including property taxes, insurance and maintenance.

The Company elected to be taxed as a REIT for federal income tax purposes commencing with the taxable year ended December 31, 1994. We believe that we have been organized and have operated in a manner that has allowed us to qualify as a REIT for federal income tax purposes and we intend to continue operating in such a manner.

Results of Operations

Overall

The Company’s real estate investment portfolio grew from approximately $5.74 billion in net investment amount representing 1,839 properties with 38.1 million square feet of gross leasable space as of December 31, 2022 to approximately $6.74 billion in net investment amount representing 2,135 properties with 44.2 million square feet of gross leasable space at December 31, 2023. The Company’s real estate investments were made throughout and between the periods presented and were not all outstanding for the entire period; accordingly, a portion of the increase in rental income between periods is related to recognizing revenue in 2023 on acquisitions that were made during 2022. Similarly, the full rental income impact of acquisitions made during 2023 will not be seen until 2024.

Acquisitions

During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company acquired 282 retail net lease assets for approximately $1.20 billion, which includes acquisition and closing costs. These properties are located in 40 states and are leased to tenants operating in 26 diverse retail sectors for a weighted average lease term of approximately 11.3 years. The underwritten weighted-average capitalization rate on the acquisitions was 6.9%.1

Dispositions

During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company sold six assets, including one former corporate headquarters office building, for net proceeds of $13.8 million. The weighted-average capitalization rate on the dispositions was 6.1%.1

1 When used within this discussion, “weighted average capitalization rate” for acquisitions and dispositions is defined by the Company as the sum of contractual fixed annual rents computed on a straight-line basis over the primary lease terms and anticipated annual net tenant recoveries, divided by the purchase and sale prices for occupied properties.

Development and Developer Funding Platform

During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company commenced 13 development and Developer Funding Platform projects. At December 31, 2023 the Company had 16 development or Developer Funding Platform projects under construction.

Comparison of Year Ended December 31, 2023 to Year Ended December 31, 2022

The variances in rental income, real estate tax expense, property operating expense and depreciation and amortization expense shown above were due to the acquisition and the ownership of an increased number of properties during the year ended December 31, 2023 compared to the year ended December 31, 2022, as further described under Results of Operations - Overall above.

General and administrative expenses increased $4.7 million, or 15%, to $34.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $30.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase was primarily the result of increased compensation costs due to inflationary increases and higher stock based compensation expense as a result of changing the vesting period for awards granted in 2023. General and administrative expenses as a percentage of total revenue decreased to 6.5% for the year ended December 31, 2023 from 7.0% for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Interest expense increased $17.7 million, or 28%, to $81.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $63.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in interest expense was primarily a result of higher levels of borrowings in 2023 in comparison to 2022 in order to finance the acquisition and development of additional properties, as well as higher interest rates under the Revolving Credit Facility. Borrowings increased due to the $350 million 2029 Unsecured Term Loan that closed in July 2023 and the issuance of the $300 million 2032 Senior Unsecured Public Notes in August 2022. These borrowings resulted in increases in interest expense during the year ended December 31, 2023 of $6.7 million related to the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan, $7.1 million related to the 2032 Senior Unsecured Public Notes, and $0.5 million related to the amortization of deferred financing fees. In addition, borrowing levels and interest rates on the Revolving Credit Facility during the year ended December 31, 2023 were higher than the comparative period in 2022 resulting in an increase in interest expense of $4.4 million. These increases in interest expense during 2023 were partially offset by an increase of $0.7 million of capitalized interest during the year ended December 31, 2023 as compared to the same period in 2022 due to the increased level of activity in development and Development Funding Platform projects during 2023 as well as a decrease of $0.5 million of interest expense related to mortgages driven by the repayment of mortgage principal during 2023 and 2022. (see Liquidity and Capital Resources – Debt below).

Gain on sale of assets decreased $3.5 million to $1.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $5.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Six properties were sold during the year ended December 31, 2023 while seven properties were sold during the year ended December 31, 2022. Gains on sales of assets are dependent on the levels of disposition activity and the assets’ basis relative to their sales prices. As a result, such gains are not necessarily comparable period-to-period.

Provision for impairment increased $6.2 million to $7.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $1.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. Provisions for impairment are recorded when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable through operations plus estimated disposition proceeds and are not necessarily comparable period-to-period.

Net income increased $17.5 million, or 11%, to $170.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $153.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The change was the result of the growth in the portfolio partially offset by the items discussed above. After allocation of income to non-controlling interest and preferred stockholders, net income attributable to common stockholders increased $17.5 million, or 12% to $162.5 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $145.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2022.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

The Company’s principal demands for funds include payment of operating expenses, payment of principal and interest on our outstanding indebtedness, dividends and distributions to its stockholders and holders of the units of the Operating Partnership (the “Operating Partnership Common Units”), and future property acquisitions and development.

In September 2023, the Company repaid a $4.6 million, 5.01% per annum, interest only mortgage note at maturity.

In July 2023, the Company closed on an unsecured $350 million 5.5-year term loan (the “2029 Unsecured Term Loan”) which includes an accordion option that allows the Company to request additional lender commitments up to a total of $500 million and matures in January 2029. Borrowings under the Term Loan are priced at SOFR plus a spread of 80 to 160 basis points over SOFR, depending on the Company’s credit ratings, plus a SOFR adjustment of 10 basis points. Based on the Company’s credit ratings at the time of closing, pricing on the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan was 95 basis points over SOFR. The Company used the existing $350 million of forward starting interest rate swaps to hedge the variable SOFR priced interest to a weighted average fixed rate of 3.57% until January 2029.

The Company expects to meet its short-term liquidity requirements through cash and cash equivalents held as of December 31, 2023, cash provided from operations, and borrowings under its revolving credit facility. As of December 31, 2023, available cash and cash equivalents, including cash held in escrow, was $14.5 million.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company had $227.0 million outstanding on its revolving credit facility and $773.0 million available for future borrowings, subject to its compliance with covenants. The Company anticipates funding its long-term capital needs through cash provided from operations, borrowings under its revolving credit facility, and the issuance of debt and common or preferred equity or other instruments convertible into or exchangeable for common or preferred equity.

We continually evaluate alternative financing and believe that we can obtain financing on reasonable terms. However, there can be no assurance that additional financing or capital will be available, or that the terms will be acceptable or advantageous to us. Our ability to access capital on favorable terms as well as to use cash from operations to continue to meet our liquidity needs, is uncertain and cannot be predicted and could be affected by various risks and uncertainties, including, but not limited to the risks detailed in Part I, Item 1A, “Risk Factors.”

Capitalization

As of December 31, 2023, the Company’s total enterprise value was approximately $8.94 billion. Total enterprise value consisted of $6.35 billion of common equity (based on the December 31, 2023 closing price of Company common stock on the NYSE of $62.95 per common share and assuming the conversion of Operating Partnership Common Units), $175.0 million of preferred equity (stated at liquidation value), and $2.43 billion of total debt including (i) $227.0 million of borrowings under its revolving credit facility; (ii) $1.81 billion of senior unsecured notes; (iii) $350.0 million of unsecured term loans (iv) $44.9 million of mortgage notes payable; less $14.5 million cash, cash equivalents and cash held in escrow. The Company’s total debt to total enterprise value was 27.2% at December 31, 2023.

At December 31, 2023, the non-controlling interest in the Operating Partnership consisted of a 0.3% common ownership interest in the Operating Partnership. The Operating Partnership Common Units may, under certain circumstances, be exchanged for shares of Company common stock on a one-for-one basis. The Company, as sole general partner of the Operating Partnership, has the option to settle exchanged Operating Partnership Common Units held by others for cash based on the current trading price of our shares. Assuming the exchange of all Operating Partnership Common Units, there would have been 100,866,974 shares of common stock outstanding at December 31, 2023.

Equity

Shelf Registration

The Company has filed with the SEC an automatic shelf registration statement on Form S-3ASR, registering an unspecified amount of common stock, preferred stock, depositary shares, warrants of the Company and guarantees of debt securities of the Operating Partnership, as well as an unspecified amount of debt securities of the Operating Partnership, at an indeterminate aggregate initial offering price. The Company may periodically offer one or more of these securities in amounts, prices and on terms to be announced when and if these securities are offered. The specifics of any future offerings, along with the use of proceeds of any securities offered, will be described in detail in a prospectus supplement, or other offering materials, at the time of any offering.

Common Stock Offerings

In December 2021, the Company completed a follow-on public offering of 5,750,000 shares of common stock, including the full exercise of the underwriters' option to purchase an additional 750,000 shares, in connection with forward sale agreements. During 2022, the Company settled all of the December 2021 forward sale agreements. The offering resulted in net proceeds to the Company of approximately $368.7 million after deducting fees and expenses and making certain other adjustments.

In May 2022, the Company completed a follow-on public offering of 5,750,000 shares of common stock, including the full exercise of the underwriters’ option to purchase 750,000 shares in connection with forward sale agreements. The Company settled all of the May 2022 forward sales agreements in 2022 which resulted in net proceeds to the Company of approximately $386.7 million, after deducting fees and expenses and making certain other adjustments.

In October 2022, the Company completed a follow-on public offering of 5,750,000 shares of common stock, including the full exercise of the underwriters' option to purchase 750,000 shares, in connection with forward sale agreements. During 2022, the Company settled 1,600,000 shares of common stock under the forward sale agreements, realizing net proceeds of $106.2 million. During 2023, the Company settled the remaining 4,150,000 shares of these October 2022 forward sale agreements, realizing net proceeds of $275.0 million. The offering resulted in total net proceeds to the Company of $381.2 million after deducting fees and expenses and making certain adjustments.

Preferred Stock Offering

As of December 31, 2023, the Company had 7,000,000 depositary shares (the “Depositary Shares”) outstanding, each representing 1/1,000th of a share of Series A Preferred Stock.

Dividends on the Series A Preferred Shares are payable monthly in arrears on the first day of each month (or, if not on a business day, on the next succeeding business day). The dividend rate is 4.25% per annum of the $25,000 (equivalent to $25.00 per Depositary Share) liquidation preference. Dividends on the Series A Preferred Shares are in the amount of $0.08854 per Depositary Share, equivalent to $1.0625 per annum.

The Company may not redeem the Series A Preferred Shares before September 2026 except in limited circumstances to preserve its status as a real estate investment trust for federal income tax purposes and except in certain circumstances upon the occurrence of a change of control of the Company. Beginning in September 2026, the Company, at its option, may redeem the Series A Preferred Shares, in whole or from time to time in part, by paying $25.00 per Depositary Share, plus any accrued and unpaid dividends. Upon the occurrence of a change in control of the Company, if the Company does not otherwise redeem the Series A Preferred Shares, the holders have a right to convert their shares into common stock of the Company at the $25.00 per share liquidation value, plus any accrued and unpaid dividends. This conversion value is limited by a share cap if the Company’s stock price falls below a certain threshold.

ATM Programs

The Company enters into ATM programs through which the Company, from time to time, sells shares of common stock and enters into forward sale agreements. The results of ATM programs are shown in the following table.

* ATM Programs have been terminated and no future issuance will occur under them.

In September 2022, the Company entered into a $750 million ATM program (the “2022 ATM Program”) through which the Company, from time to time, may sell shares of common stock and/or enter into forward sale agreements.

As of December 31, 2023, the Company entered into forward sale agreements to sell an aggregate of 10,197,230 shares of common stock under the 2022 ATM Program, for anticipated net proceeds of $669.1 million. The Company has settled 6,363,359 shares of these forward sale agreements as of December 31, 2023 for net proceeds of approximately $433.4 million after deducting fees and expenses. The Company is required to settle the remaining outstanding shares of common stock under the 2022 ATM Program by January 2025. The Company had approximately $75.8 million of availability remaining under this program as of December 31, 2023.

Debt

The below table summarizes the Company’s outstanding debt as of December 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022 (presented in thousands):

34

(1) The interest rate of the Revolving Credit Facility assumes SOFR as of December 31, 2023 of 5.39%.

(2) The interest rate of the Unsecured Term Loan reflects the spread of 95 basis points plus the impact of the interest rate swaps which convert $350 million of SOFR based interest to a fixed interest rate of 3.57%.

(3) All-in interest rate for Senior Unsecured Notes reflects the straight-line amortization of the terminated swap agreements, as applicable.

(4) The principal amounts outstanding are presented excluding their original issue discounts.

Senior Unsecured Revolving Credit Facility

The Company’s First Amendment to the Third Amended and Restated Revolving Credit Agreement provides for a $1.0 billion Revolving Credit Facility and converted the interest rate on the existing $1.0 billion Revolving Credit Facility from a spread over LIBOR to a spread over SOFR plus a SOFR adjustment of 10 basis points. The Revolving Credit Facility includes an accordion option that allows the Company to request additional lender commitments up to a total of $1.75 billion. The Revolving Credit Facility will mature in January 2026 with Company options to extend the maturity date to January 2027.

The Revolving Credit Facility's interest rate is based on a pricing grid with a range of 72.5 to 140 basis points over SOFR, determined by the Company's credit ratings and leverage ratio, plus a SOFR adjustment of 10 basis points. The margins for the Revolving Credit Facility are subject to improvement based on the Company's leverage ratio, provided its credit ratings meet a certain threshold. Based on the Company's credit ratings and leverage ratio at the time of closing, pricing on the Revolving Credit Facility was 87.5 basis points over SOFR. In connection with the Company's ongoing environmental, social and governance ("ESG") initiatives, pricing on the Revolving Credit Facility will decrease 1 basis point beginning in January 2024 due to improvements in the Company’s ESG rating score during 2023. Pricing may further be reduced if additional specific ESG rating improvements are achieved.

The Company and Richard Agree, the Executive Chairman of the Company, were parties to a Reimbursement Agreement dated November 18, 2014 (the “Reimbursement Agreement”). Pursuant to the Reimbursement Agreement, Mr. Agree had agreed to reimburse the Company for any loss incurred under the Revolving Credit Facility in an amount not to exceed $14.0 million to the extent that the value of the Operating Partnership’s assets available to satisfy the Operating Partnership’s obligations under the Revolving Credit Facility is less than $14.0 million. The parties terminated the Reimbursement Agreement and entered into a new reimbursement agreement dated October 3, 2023 (the “New Reimbursement Agreement”). Pursuant to the New Reimbursement Agreement, Mr. Agree has agreed to reimburse the Company for his proportionate share of loss incurred under the Revolving Credit Facility in an amount to be determined by facts and circumstances at the time of loss.

Unsecured Term Loan

On July 31, 2023, the Company closed on the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan, an unsecured $350 million 5.5-year term loan which includes an accordion option that allows the Company to request additional lender commitments up to a total of $500 million and matures in January 2029. Borrowings under the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan are priced at SOFR plus a spread of 80 to 160 basis points over SOFR, depending on the Company’s credit ratings, plus a SOFR adjustment of 10 basis points. The Company used the existing $350 million of forward starting interest rate swaps to hedge the variable SOFR priced interest to a weighted average fixed rate of 3.57% until January 2029.

Senior Unsecured Notes – Private Placement

The Senior Unsecured Notes (collectively the “Private Placements”) were issued in private placements to individual investors. The Private Placements did not involve a public offering in reliance on the exemption from registration pursuant to Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act.

Senior Unsecured Notes – Public Offerings

The Senior Unsecured Public Notes (collectively the “Public Notes”) are fully and unconditionally guaranteed by Agree Realty Corporation and certain wholly owned subsidiaries of the Operating Partnership. These guarantees are senior unsecured obligations of the guarantors, rank equally in right of payment with all other existing and future senior unsecured indebtedness and are effectively subordinated to all secured indebtedness of the Operating Partnership and each guarantor (to the extent of the value of the collateral securing such indebtedness) of the guarantors.

The Public Notes are governed by an Indenture, dated August 17, 2020, among the Operating Partnership, the Company and respective trustee (as amended and supplemented by an officer’s certificate dated at the issuance of each of the Public Notes, the “Indenture”). The Indenture contains various restrictive covenants, including limitations on the ability of the guarantors and the issuer to incur additional indebtedness and requirements to maintain a pool of unencumbered assets.

Mortgage Notes Payable

As of December 31, 2023, the Company had total gross mortgage indebtedness of $44.9 million which was collateralized by related real estate and tenants’ leases with an aggregate net book value of $79.3 million. The weighted average interest rate on the Company’s mortgage notes payable was 3.78% as of December 31, 2023.

The Company has entered into mortgage loans which are secured by multiple properties and contain cross-default and cross-collateralization provisions. Cross-collateralization provisions allow a lender to foreclose on multiple properties in the event that the Company defaults under the loan. Cross-default provisions allow a lender to foreclose on the related property in the event a default is declared under another loan.

Loan Covenants

Certain loan agreements contain various restrictive covenants, including the following financial covenants: maximum leverage ratio, maximum secured leverage ratios, consolidated net worth requirements, a minimum fixed charge coverage ratio, a maximum unencumbered leverage ratio, a minimum unsecured interest expense ratio, a minimum interest coverage ratio, a minimum unsecured debt yield and a minimum unencumbered interest expense ratio. As of December 31, 2023, the most restrictive covenant was the minimum unencumbered interest expense ratio. The Company was in compliance with all of its material loan covenants and obligations as of December 31, 2023.

Cash Flows

Operating - Most of the Company’s cash from operations is generated by rental income from its investment portfolio. Net cash provided by operating activities for the year ended December 31, 2023 increased by $29.5 million over 2022, primarily due to the increase in the size of the Company’s real estate investment portfolio, partially offset by normal course changes in working capital as well as the proceeds received in connection with the settlement of interest rate swaps during 2022. No such settlements were completed in 2023.

Investing - Net cash used in investing activities was $341.0 million lower during the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to 2022 primarily due to:

• Cash used for property acquisitions decreased $372.5 million due to the overall decrease in the level of acquisition activity; and
• Proceeds from asset sales decreased by $31.1 million. Proceeds from asset sales are dependent on levels of disposition activity and the specific assets sold and are not necessarily comparable period-to-period.

Financing - Net cash provided by financing activities decreased by $368.5 million during the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to 2022 primarily due to:

• Net proceeds from the issuance of common stock decreased by $567.9 million;
• Net borrowings under the Revolving Credit Facility increased by $187.0 million. During 2023, the Company borrowed a net of $127.0 million under the Revolving Credit Facility while net repayments of $60.0 million were completed in 2022;
• Total dividends and distributions paid to the Company’s common and preferred stockholders and non-controlling interest increased by $57.4 million to $286.1 million in 2023 as compared to $228.7 million in 2022 due to the increase in the annualized common dividend rate and increased number of common shares outstanding. The Company’s annualized common stock dividend declared during the fourth quarter of 2023 of $2.964 per common share, represents a 2.9% increase over the annualized dividend amount of $2.880 per common share declared in December 2022;
• Net proceeds from unsecured borrowings increased by $52.5 million. During the year ended December 31, 2023, $350 million of proceeds were received as a result of the issuance of the 2029 Unsecured Term Loan while $297.5 million of proceeds were received during the year ended December 31, 2022 from the issuance of the 2032 Senior Unsecured Public Notes; and
• Payments of mortgage notes payable decreased $19.0 million driven by the principal repayment on interest only mortgage notes payable. During 2023, the Company repaid a $4.6 million, 5.01% per annum, interest only mortgage note as compared to the repayment of a $23.6 million, 3.60% per annum, interest only mortgage note during 2022.

Material Cash Requirements

In conducting our business, the Company enters into contractual obligations, including those for debt and operating leases for land.

(1) The Revolving Credit Facility matures in January 2026, with options to extend the maturity date by six months up to two times, for a maximum maturity of January 2027.

(2) Estimated interest payments calculated for (i) variable rate debt based on the rate in effect at period-end and (ii) fixed rate debt based on the coupon interest rate.

In addition to items reflected in the table above, the Company has preferred stock with cumulative cash dividends, as described under Equity – Preferred Stock Offering above.

During the year ended December 31, 2023 the Company had 37 development or Developer Funding Platform projects completed or under construction, for which 16 remain under construction as of December 31, 2023. Anticipated total costs for the 16 projects are approximately $63.7 million. These construction commitments will be funded using cash provided from operations, current capital resources on hand, and/or other sources of funding available to the Company.

The Company’s recurring obligations under its tenant leases for maintenance, taxes, and/or insurance will also be funded

through the sources available to the Company described earlier.

Dividends

During the fourth quarter of 2023 the Company declared monthly dividends of $0.247 per common share for October, November, and December 2023. The holder of the Operating Partnership Common Units is entitled to an equal distribution per Operating Partnership Common Unit held. The dividends and distributions payable for October and November were paid during the quarter. The December dividends and distributions were recorded as a liability on the Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 2023 and were paid on January 16, 2024.

During the fourth quarter of 2023, the Company declared monthly dividends on the Series A Preferred Shares for October, November, and December 2023 in the amount of $0.08854 per Depositary Share. The dividends payable for October and November were paid during the quarter. The December dividend was recorded as a liability on the Consolidated Balance Sheet at December 31, 2023 and were paid on January 2, 2024.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Refer to Note 2 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies in the consolidated financial statements for a summary and anticipated impact of each accounting pronouncement on the Company’s financial statements.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

The preparation of our financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) requires the Company’s management to use judgment in the application of accounting policies, including making estimates and assumptions. Management bases estimates on the best information available at the time, its experience and on various other assumptions believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. These estimates affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. If management’s judgment or interpretation of the facts and circumstances relating to various transactions or other matters had been different, it is possible that different accounting principles would have been applied, resulting in a different presentation of the consolidated financial statements. From time-to-time, the Company may re-evaluate its estimates and assumptions. In the event estimates or assumptions prove to be different from actual results, adjustments are made in subsequent periods to reflect more current estimates and assumptions about matters that are inherently uncertain. A summary of the Company’s critical accounting policies is included below. This summary should be read in conjunction with the more complete discussion of our accounting policies and procedures included in Note 2 to our consolidated financial statements.

Accounting for Acquisitions of Real Estate

The acquisition of property for investment purposes is typically accounted for as an asset acquisition. The Company allocates the purchase price to land, building, assumed debt, if any, and identified intangible assets and liabilities, based in each case on their relative estimated fair values and without giving rise to goodwill. In making estimates of fair values, the Company may use various sources, including data provided by independent third parties, as well as information obtained by the Company as a result of due diligence, including expected future cash flows of the property and various characteristics of the markets where the property is located. Certain assumptions, including those around market land values and market rental rates, are inherently subjective. While assumptions of market land values and market rental rates are based on available market data, the application of market data to the unique nature of properties acquired may require significant judgment. The use of different assumptions in the allocation of the purchase price of the acquired properties could affect the timing of recognition of the related revenue and expenses.

Impairments

We review our real estate investments for possible impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable through operations plus estimated disposition proceeds. Events or circumstances that may occur include, but are not limited to, significant changes in real estate market conditions, estimated residual values, our ability or expectation to re-lease properties that are vacant or become vacant or a change in the anticipated holding period for a property. Identification of such events may involve certain assumptions, estimates, and significant judgment.

Management determines whether an impairment in value has occurred by comparing the estimated future cash flows (undiscounted and without interest charges), including the residual value of the real estate, to the carrying cost of the individual asset. Impairments are measured to the extent the current book value exceeds the estimated fair value of the asset less disposition costs for any assets classified as held for sale.

The valuation of impaired assets is determined using valuation techniques including discounted cash flow analysis, analysis of recent comparable sales transactions and/or purchase offers received from third parties. The Company may consider a single valuation technique or multiple valuation techniques, as appropriate, when estimating the fair value of its real estate.

The expected cash flows of a property are dependent on estimates and other factors subject to change, including (1) changes in the national, regional, and/or local economic climates and/or market conditions, (2) competition from other retail, (3) increases in operating costs, (4) bankruptcy and/or other changes in a tenant’s condition and (5) expected holding period. These factors could cause our expected future cash flows from a property to change, and, as a result, an impairment could be considered to have occurred. Determination of the fair value of a property for purposes of measuring impairment may involve significant judgment.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures

Funds from Operations (“FFO” or “Nareit FFO”)

FFO is defined by the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts, Inc. (“Nareit”) to mean net income computed in accordance with GAAP, excluding gains (or losses) from sales of real estate assets and/or changes in control, plus real estate related depreciation and amortization and any impairment charges on depreciable real estate assets, and after adjustments for unconsolidated partnerships and joint ventures. Historical cost accounting for real estate assets in accordance with GAAP implicitly assumes that the value of real estate assets diminishes predictably over time. Since real estate values instead have historically risen or fallen with market conditions, most real estate industry investors consider FFO to be helpful in evaluating a real estate company’s operations.

FFO should not be considered an alternative to net income as the primary indicator of the Company’s operating performance, or as an alternative to cash flow as a measure of liquidity. Further, while the Company adheres to the Nareit definition of FFO, its presentation of FFO is not necessarily comparable to similarly titled measures of other REITs due to the fact that all REITs may not use the same definition.

Core Funds from Operations (“Core FFO”)

The Company defines Core FFO as Nareit FFO with the addback of (i) noncash amortization of acquisition purchase price related to above- and below- market lease intangibles and discount on assumed mortgage debt and (ii) certain infrequently occurring items that reduce or increase net income in accordance with GAAP. Management believes that its measure of Core FFO facilitates useful comparison of performance to its peers who predominantly transact in sale-leaseback transactions and are thereby not required by GAAP to allocate purchase price to lease intangibles. Unlike many of its peers, the Company has acquired the substantial majority of its net-leased properties through acquisitions of properties from third parties or in connection with the acquisitions of ground leases from third parties.

Core FFO should not be considered an alternative to net income as the primary indicator of the Company’s operating performance, or as an alternative to cash flow as a measure of liquidity. Further, the Company’s presentation of Core FFO is not necessarily comparable to similarly titled measures of other REITs due to the fact that all REITs may not use the same definition.

Adjusted Funds from Operations (“AFFO”)

AFFO is a non-GAAP financial measure of operating performance used by many companies in the REIT industry. AFFO further adjusts FFO and Core FFO for certain non-cash items that reduce or increase net income computed in accordance with GAAP. Management considers AFFO a useful supplemental measure of the Company’s performance, however,

AFFO should not be considered an alternative to net income as an indication of its performance, or to cash flow as a measure of liquidity or ability to make distributions. The Company’s computation of AFFO may differ from the methodology for calculating AFFO used by other equity REITs, and therefore may not be comparable to such other REITs.

The following table provides a reconciliation of net income to FFO, Core FFO, and AFFO for the years ended December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 (presented in thousands):

The Company is exposed to interest rate risk primarily through borrowing activities. There is inherent roll-over risk for borrowings as they mature and are renewed at current market rates. The extent of this risk is not quantifiable or predictable because of the variability of future interest rates and our future financing requirements.

The Company’s interest rate risk is monitored using a variety of techniques. The table below presents the principal payments (presented in thousands) and the weighted average interest rates on outstanding debt, by year of expected maturity, to evaluate the expected cash flows and sensitivity to interest rate changes. Average interest rates shown reflect the impact of the swap agreements employed to fix interest rates.

(1) The Revolving Credit Facility matures in January 2026, with options to extend the maturity date by six months up to two times, for a maximum maturity of January 2027.

(2) The interest rate of the Unsecured Term Loan reflects the credit spread of 95 basis points plus the impact of the interest rate swaps which convert $350 million of SOFR based interest to a fixed interest rate of 3.57%.

The table above incorporates those exposures that exist as of December 31, 2023; it does not consider those exposures or positions which could arise after that date. As a result, the Company’s ultimate realized gain or loss with respect to interest rate fluctuations will depend on the exposures that arise during the period and interest rates.

The Company seeks to limit the impact of interest rate changes on earnings and cash flows and to lower the overall borrowing costs by closely monitoring our variable rate debt and converting such debt to fixed rates when the Company deems such conversion advantageous. From time to time, the Company may enter into interest rate swap agreements or other interest rate hedging contracts. While these agreements are intended to lessen the impact of rising interest rates, they also expose the Company to the risks that the other parties to the agreements will not perform. The Company could incur significant costs associated with the settlement of the agreements, the agreements will be unenforceable and the underlying transactions will fail to qualify as highly effective cash flow hedges under GAAP guidance.

In June 2023, the Company entered into $350 million of forward starting interest rate swap agreements to hedge against variability in future cash flows resulting from changes in SOFR. The swaps exchange variable rate interest on $350 million of SOFR indexed debt to a weighted average fixed interest rate of 3.57% beginning August 1, 2023 through January 1, 2029. The swaps are designated to hedge the variable rate interest payments indexed to SOFR in the Senior Unsecured Term Loan which matures January 2029. As of December 31, 2023, these interest rate swaps were valued as a liability of approximately $1.3 million.

In December 2023, the Company entered into $150 million forward-starting interest rate swap agreements to hedge against changes in future cash flows resulting from changes in SOFR. The swaps exchange variable rate SOFR interest on $150 million of SOFR indexed debt to a weighted average fixed interest rate of 3.60% beginning December 31, 2024 through the maturity date of December 31, 2034. The swaps are designated to hedge previously unhedged variable rate interest payments indexed to SOFR. As of December 31, 2023, these interest rate swaps were valued as a liability of approximately $3.2 million.

The Company does not use derivative instruments for trading or other speculative purposes, and the Company did not have any other derivative instruments as of December 31, 2023.

The fair value of the mortgage notes payable and senior unsecured notes is estimated to be $41.2 million and $1.60 billion, respectively, as of December 31, 2023. The fair value of the Revolving Credit Facility and Unsecured Term Loan approximate their carrying values as they are variable rate debt.

Disclosure Controls and Procedures

At the end of the period covered by this report, the Company conducted an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, of its disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act). Based on this evaluation, the Company’s principal executive officer and principal financial officer concluded that its disclosure controls and procedures are effective as of the end of the period covered by this report to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in reports that the Company files or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in SEC rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to management, including the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.

Management’s Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting

Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as defined in Rules 13a15-(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act. Our internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with GAAP. Our internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that:

1) Pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of our Company;

2) Provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with GAAP, and that our receipts and expenditures are being made only in accordance with authorizations of our management and directors; and

3) Provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of our assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.

Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.

Under the supervision of our principal executive officer and our principal financial officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting based on the framework in Internal Control – Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Based on our assessment and those criteria, our management concluded that we maintained effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2023.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There was no change in our internal control over financial reporting during our most recently completed fiscal quarter that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.

Attestation Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm

The attestation report issued by our independent registered public accounting firm, Grant Thornton LLP, required under this item is contained on page F-2 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.