TM editors' note: This article discusses a penny stock and/or microcap. Such stocks are easily manipulated; do your own careful due diligence.

With the rise of interest rates, REIT Investing may help investors to obtain some decent returns, while the markets are going up and down. I have found 3 REITs worth investigating and a bonus stock pick.

These REITs have some basic features in common:

• Dividend Yield above 9%
• Growing Revenue and Net Income (Past 4 years)
• Payout ratios below 100%
• Active in managing properties, not in mortgage and loans

The last aspect is important. Some REITs invest in portfolio of mortgage and loans assets. Given the rise of the interest rates, mortgate REITs may not do as well as equity REITs when interest rate are going up.

REIT #1 – Slate Office REIT (SOL-UN.TO, SLTTF)

Slate Office operates in Canada. Here are some highlights:

1. Dividend yield of 9.79%
2. Payout ratio of 65%
3. Revenue growth rate of 63% between 2014-2017
4. Net income growth rate of 250% between 2014-2017
5. Monthly dividend distribution of 0,0625$ / share

The company produced decent results during their Q3 2018. We could even expect a slight hike in stock price, as the average price target from analysts is 8.13. The stock is currently selling at 7.53$/share on the TSX.

Here is the second REIT worth considering at this time

REIT #2 – True North Commercial Real Estate Investment Trust (TNT-UN.TO, BTBIF)

True North operates in Canada. Here are some highlights:

1. Dividend yield of 9.32%
2. Payout ratio of 84%
3. Revenue growth rate of 34% between 2014-2017
4. Net income growth rate of 32% between 2014-2017
5. Monthly dividend distribution of 0,0495$ / share

The company produced decent results during their Q3 2018. We could even expect a slight hike in stock price, as the average price target from analysts is 6.83$. The stock is currently selling at 6.40$/share on the TSX.

I also like this quote from their latest press release on their Q32018 results:

Revenue from property operations increased $8 million or 61% from Q3 2017 to $22.5 millionwith government and credit-rated tenants accounting for 79%

Here is the third REIT worth considering at this time

REIT #3 – BTB Real Estate Investment Trust (BTB-UN.TO)

BTB operates in Canada. Here are some highlights:

1. Dividend yield of 9.01%
2. Payout ratio of 65.6%
3. Revenue growth rate of 3% between 2014-2017
4. Net income growth rate of 27.7% between 2014-2017
5. Monthly dividend distribution of 0,035$ / share

The company produced decent growth that should be sustainable, given its quarterly reports for 2018. So the distribution per share should be sustainable in the near future at least. Here are some highlights from the company’s latest earnings release:

• Increase of 17.5% in distributable income⁽¹⁾ per unit, of 14.5% in FFO⁽¹⁾ and of 12.9% in AFFO⁽¹⁾ per unit;
• Reduction of total debt ratio from 65.8% to 63.8%;
• “We continue to execute our strategic plan, selling less performing assets to purchase better located and performing properties;

In addition to the 3 REITs we have discussed above, here is another solid stock pick with solid dividend yield from the TSX.

Stock Pick – Chesswood Group Limited (CHW.TO, CHWWF)

Chesswook Group LTD operates in Canada. Here are some highlights:

1. Dividend yield of 8.08%
2. Payout ratio of 54.2%
3. Revenue growth rate of 21.6% between 2014-2017
4. Net income growth rate of 31.7% between 2014-2017
5. Monthly dividend distribution of 0,07$ / share

The company is a specialty finance firms. It operates throught 2 segments: Equipment Financing US and Equipment Financing Canada. The company offers equipment financing to small and medium companies in both Canada and the United States.

The company produced decent financial results lately, given its quarterly reports for 2018. The payout of less than 60% shows that the dividend is covered by the company’s net income. The only risk i see is that the company provides financing to companies with credit rating from A to C. So, as you can read in the Q32018 press release, they some time have to deal with ‘delinquency’ and they some times have to deal with doubtful accounts.