135 Dividend Increases and Counting: What Realty Income’s Streak Tells Investors
Realty Income has raised its dividend more than 135 times, but GAAP earnings keep missing estimates and the yield spread over Treasuries has nearly vanished. Understanding what actually funds those monthly checks changes how the streak looks.
Realty Income (NYSE:O) keeps adding to one of the longest dividend-raise records in real estate. Realty Income declared its 135th increase in its monthly common stock dividend. A company release dated September 8, 2026, is titled “136th Common Stock Monthly Dividend Increase Declared by Realty Income,” so the count has already moved past that figure. The streak rests on AFFO coverage, which measures how much of each dollar of adjusted funds from operations goes out as dividends.
AFFO Coverage Shows What GAAP Earnings Hide
On GAAP numbers, the payout looks stretched. Second-quarter EPS of $0.37 missed expectations of $0.42, weighed down by a $54.2M impairment. Impairments and depreciation don’t cost any cash, so REITs fund dividends from AFFO. In Q2, AFFO per share was $1.09 and monthly dividends paid totaled $0.8115, about 74% of AFFO. Measured against 2026 AFFO guidance of $4.44 to $4.45, the forward annualized dividend of $3.258 works out to roughly 73%. Realty Income keeps the rest of that cash and puts it into new properties.
Tiny Raises, Relentless Rhythm
Recent increases have come in steps of $0.0005. The monthly payout rose from $0.2695 in October 2025 to $0.2715 for the payment due November 13, 2026, a gain of about 0.74%. Over the same stretch, Q2 AFFO per share grew 3.8%. Cash flow is growing faster than the dividend, and that gap protects the streak. The record includes 676 straight monthly dividends, 115 straight quarterly increases, and more than 31 consecutive years of raises.
Rates and Tenants Could Slow the Raises
Interest rates are the main pressure point. The 10-year Treasury yielded 5.15% on October 19. Realty Income’s yield of 5.48% is only about 0.33 percentage points higher. Leverage edged up to 5.4x from 5.2x, and non-investment-grade tenants still supply 65.7% of annualized base rent. On the positive side, occupancy stood at 98.8% and re-leased properties achieved 102.7% of prior rent. New debt issued this year has a 3.9% blended coupon, while new investments yield 7.3%. Public equity funded only 18% of investment volume year to date, versus a 47% average over the past three years.
What to Watch at the Q3 Report
Signs of strength would be AFFO coverage holding in the low-to-mid 70% range, guidance remaining at or above $4.44 to $4.45, and credit losses remaining under the 40 basis points management has guided to. Warning signs would be leverage climbing beyond 5.4x or the gap between investment yields and borrowing costs narrowing while the 10-year stays above 5%. Shares are down 3.06% over the past year, suggesting investors are pricing in rate risk.
Verdict: The Streak Has Room to Run
With about a quarter of AFFO left after dividends and AFFO growing roughly 4%, Realty Income can keep making small raises, so the streak is very likely to continue. Coverage backs it up.
Contact [email protected] for any questions or corrections.
Chris Lange is a financial and geopolitical writer with more than a decade of experience covering a myriad of topics. He has published thousands of articles for 24/7 Wall St., with past coverage focused heavily on stocks, IPOs, healthcare, defense, global affairs, and technology.
His work has been quoted, or referenced by a number of outlets including Business Insider, USA Today, Yahoo Finance, MSN, The Motley Fool, and many other publications. A graduate of Southwestern University, he studied business with a focus on investments and has previous experience in banking and startups.
When not reading or writing the news, he is following his passion for Lacrosse, playing chess, or building solar projects with his dad.
