New Glasgow, Nova Scotia--(Newsfile Corp. - May 6, 2026) - Crombie Real Estate Investment Trust (TSX: CRR.UN) ("Crombie") today announced results for its first quarter ended March 31, 2026. Management will host a conference call to discuss the results at 12:00 p.m. (EDT), May 7, 2026.

"Crombie delivered a strong start to 2026, with first-quarter results that reflect the focused execution of our strategy and the quality of our portfolio," said Mark Holly, President and CEO. "In a dynamic macroeconomic environment, our necessity-based, grocery-anchored real estate continues to demonstrate its resilience, generating commercial same-asset property cash NOI growth of 3.7%, with committed occupancy remaining near historic highs. These results, supported by disciplined capital allocation and a solid balance sheet, underpin today's distribution increase and reflect our confidence in the durability of our cash flows and our ability to deliver consistent long-term value for unitholders."

FIRST QUARTER SUMMARY
(In thousands of Canadian dollars, except per Unit amounts and square feet and as otherwise noted)

Information in this press release is a select summary of results. This press release should be read in conjunction with Crombie's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2026 and Interim Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements and Notes for the periods ended March 31, 2026, and March 31, 2025. Full details on our results can be found at www.crombie.ca and www.sedarplus.ca.

Operational Highlights

• Committed occupancy of 97.6% and economic occupancy of 96.8%; a 50 basis point increase on committed occupancy and a 30 basis point increase on economic occupancy, compared to the first quarter of 2025
• Renewals of 232,000 square feet at rents 12.1% above expiring rental rates
  • An increase of 13.2% for the three months ended March 31, 2026 using the weighted average rental rate during the renewal term
• Acquired two retail-related industrial properties, one in Whitby, Ontario, and one in Saint-Hubert, Québec, representing 539,000 square feet, for total purchase price of $129,800
• Invested $6,384 in modernizations during the quarter

(1) Non-GAAP financial measures used by management to evaluate Crombie's business performance. See "Non-GAAP Measures and Cautionary Statements" below for a reconciliation of FFO, AFFO, and commercial same-asset property cash NOI.

Financial Highlights

(1) Non-GAAP financial measures used by management to evaluate Crombie's business performance. See "Non-GAAP Measures and Cautionary Statements" below for a reconciliation of FFO, AFFO, commercial same-asset property cash NOI, debt to gross fair value, and debt to trailing 12 months adjusted EBITDA.
(2) At Crombie's proportionate share including joint ventures.
(3) Operating income attributable to Unitholders, FFO, AFFO, and Debt to trailing 12 months adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2025 were updated from the previously reported figures for a change in presentation of fair value of Unit-based compensation.

Financial Metrics

First Quarter 2026 Results

Operating income attributable to Unitholders

The increase in operating income in the first quarter of 2026 was primarily due to growth in property revenue from renewals, new leasing, and acquisitions, and an increase in development fees from joint ventures. This was offset in part by higher tenant incentive amortization from modernizations.

Commercial same-asset property cash NOI

The increase in commercial same-asset property cash NOI for the quarter was primarily driven by renewals, contractual rent step-ups, and new leasing.

FFO

The increase in FFO in the quarter was primarily due to property revenue growth as discussed above, and increased revenue from management and development services.

AFFO

The increase in AFFO was primarily due to the same factors impacting FFO for the quarter.

Operational Metrics

(1) This includes properties owned at full and partial interests, excluding joint ventures, wholly owned residential, and properties under development.
(2) Gross leasable area is adjusted to reflect Crombie's proportionate interest in partially owned properties, excluding joint ventures and a wholly owned residential asset.
(3) Represents space currently under lease contract and rent has commenced.
(4) Represents current economic occupancy plus completed lease contracts for future occupancy of currently vacant space.
(5) Inclusive of properties under development.

Committed occupancy of 97.6% included 166,000 square feet of space committed at March 31, 2026. VECTOM and Major Markets represent 115,000 square feet of committed space. The increase in committed occupancy compared to March 31, 2025 was due to new leasing activity and acquisitions.

New commercial leases increased occupancy by 30,000 square feet at March 31, 2026, at an average first-year rate of $29.20 per square foot.

Renewal activity for the first quarter of 2026 consisted of 232,000 square feet with an increase of 12.1% over expiring rental rates. The primary driver of renewal growth in the quarter was 117,000 square feet of retail renewals.

When comparing the expiring rental rates to the weighted average rental rate for the renewal term, Crombie achieved an increase of 13.2% for the three months ended March 31, 2026.

Financial Condition Metrics

(1) Represents the undrawn portion on the credit facilities, excluding joint facilities with joint operation partners.
(2) See Capital Management note in the Financial Statements.
(3) Non-GAAP financial measures used by management to evaluate Crombie's business performance. See "Non-GAAP Measures and Cautionary Statements" below for a reconciliation of debt to gross fair value, debt to trailing 12 months adjusted EBITDA, and interest coverage ratio.
(4) See Debt Metrics section in the Management's Discussion and Analysis.
(5) For the three months ended March 31, 2026, December 31, 2025, and March 31, 2025.
(6) Debt to trailing 12 months adjusted EBITDA and interest coverage ratio for the three months ended December 31, 2025 and March 31, 2025, were updated from the previously reported figures for a change in presentation of fair value of Unit-based compensation.

Portfolio Optimization

Our development program is divided into major development projects with a total estimated cost greater than $50,000, and non-major development projects with a total estimate cost below $50,000.

Major Development

Crombie has one active major development, the Marlstone is a 291-unit residential rental project in the heart of downtown Halifax, located within the Scotia Square mixed-use retail, office, and hotel complex. Construction is nearing completion, with initial occupancy having commenced.

Non-major Development

Non-major developments are shorter in duration and thus carry less overall risk as compared to Crombie's major development pipeline. These projects have the ability to create value while enhancing the overall quality of the portfolio.

In the first quarter of 2026, Crombie invested $6,384 in its modernization program.

The table below summarizes active non-major developments within Crombie's portfolio at March 31, 2026.

(1) Modernizations are capital investments to modernize/renovate Crombie-owned grocery-anchored properties in exchange for a defined return and potential extended lease term. The spend on completed modernizations for the three months ended March 31, 2026 was $6,384 (three months ended March 31, 2025 - $2,161).
(2) Estimated cost to complete reflects approved projects currently in progress. It does not include potential future projects for which approvals have not yet been obtained. 

Highlighted Subsequent Events

Acquisition Activity

On April 10, 2026, Crombie acquired two land parcels at an existing property from a subsidiary of Empire totalling 12,000 square feet for $5,700, excluding closing and transaction costs.

On April 28, 2026, Crombie acquired a 100% interest in a retail property from a subsidiary of Empire totalling 29,500 square feet for $12,700, excluding closing and transaction costs.

Distributions

Subsequent to March 31, 2026, Crombie announced an increase of distributions to 91.00 cents per Unit from the previous rate of 90.00 cents per Unit per year (an increase of 1.11%). The increase will be effective for Unitholders of record on May 31, 2026.

Conference Call and Webcast

Crombie will provide additional details regarding its first quarter ended March 31, 2026 results on a conference call to be held Thursday, May 7, 2026, beginning at 12:00 p.m. (EDT). Accompanying the conference call will be a presentation that will be available on the Investors section of Crombie's website. To join the conference call, please dial +1-833-752-5566 (U.S./Canada) or +1-647-258-0575 (international). To join the conference call without operator assistance, you may register and enter your details at https://api.newsfilecorp.com/redirect/OAnQ7u2nP4 to receive an instant automated call back. You may also listen to a live audio webcast of the conference call by visiting the Investors section of Crombie's website at www.crombie.ca.

A replay will be available by dialing +1-855-669-9658 or +1-412-317-0088 and entering password 9384831#, until midnight on May 14, 2026.

Non-GAAP Measures and Cautionary Statements

Net property income, commercial same-asset property cash NOI, FFO, AFFO, FFO payout ratio, AFFO payout ratio, debt to trailing 12 months adjusted EBITDA, debt to gross fair value, and interest coverage ratio are non-GAAP financial measures that do not have a standardized meaning under International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS"). These measures as computed by Crombie may differ from similar computations as reported by other entities and, accordingly, may not be comparable to other such entities. Management includes these measures as they represent key performance indicators to management, and it believes certain investors use these measures as a means of assessing Crombie's financial performance. For additional information on these non-GAAP measures see our Management's Discussion and Analysis for the three months ended March 31, 2026.

The reconciliations for each non-GAAP measure included in this press release are outlined as follows:

Net Property Income

Management uses net property income as a measure of performance of properties period over period.

Net property income is as follows:

Same-Asset Property Cash NOI

Crombie measures certain performance and operating metrics on a same-asset basis to evaluate the period-over-period performance of those properties owned and operated by Crombie. "Same-asset" refers to those properties that were owned and operated by Crombie for the current and comparative reporting periods. Properties that will be undergoing a redevelopment in a future period and those for which planning activities are underway are also in this category until such development activities commence and/or tenant leasing/renewal activity is suspended. Same‐asset property cash NOI reflects Crombie's proportionate ownership of jointly operated properties (and excludes any properties held in joint ventures).

Management uses net property income on a cash basis (property cash NOI) as a measure of performance, as it reflects the cash generated by properties period over period. Net property income on a cash basis, which excludes non-cash straight-line rent recognition and amortization of tenant incentive amounts, is as follows:

 
(1) Refer to "Amortization of Tenant Incentives" in the Management's Discussion and Analysis for a breakdown of tenant incentive amortization.
(2) Residential includes 100% owned residential property.

FFO

Crombie follows the recommendations of the Real Property Association of Canada ("REALPAC") publication "REALPAC Funds From Operations (FFO) & Adjusted Funds From Operations (AFFO) for IFRS (January 2022)" in calculating FFO and has applied these recommendations to the FFO amounts included in this press release.

The reconciliation of FFO for the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025 is as follows:

 
(1) Includes the fair value changes of Crombie's Unit based plans and fair value changes of financial instruments which do not qualify for hedge accounting.
(2) Change in fair value of financial instruments, FFO and the related payout ratios for the three months ended March 31, 2025 were updated from the previously reported figures for a change in presentation of fair value of Unit-based compensation.

AFFO

Crombie follows the recommendations of the "REALPAC Funds From Operations (FFO) & Adjusted Funds From Operations (AFFO) for IFRS (January 2022)" in calculating AFFO and has applied these recommendations to the AFFO amounts included in this press release.

The reconciliation of AFFO for the three months ended March 31, 2026 and 2025 is as follows:

 
(1) FFO, AFFO and the related payout ratios for the three months ended March 31, 2025 were updated from the previously reported figures for a change in presentation of fair value of Unit-based compensation.

Debt Metrics

Debt to gross fair value is a non-GAAP measure and may not be comparable to that used by other entities.

The fair value included in this calculation reflects the fair value of the properties as at March 31, 2026, December 31, 2025, and March 31, 2025, respectively, based on each property's current use as a revenue-generating investment property. Additionally, as properties are prepared for redevelopment, Crombie considers each property's progress through entitlement in determining the fair value of a property.

 
(1) Includes Crombie's share of fixed rate mortgages, floating rate construction loans, floating rate revolving credit facilities, and lease liabilities held in joint ventures.
(2) See the "Joint Ventures" section in the Management's Discussion and Analysis.
(3) Excludes tenant incentives, accumulated amortization, and accrued straight-line rent receivable.
(4) Includes deferred financing charges.

The following table presents a reconciliation of operating income attributable to Unitholders to adjusted EBITDA. Adjusted EBITDA is a non-GAAP measure and should not be considered an alternative to operating income attributable to Unitholders, and may not be comparable to that used by other entities.

 
(1) Includes debt held in joint ventures, at Crombie's share.
(2) Operating income attributable to Unitholders for the three months ended December 31, 2025 and March 31, 2025 were updated from the previously reported figures for a change in presentation of fair value of Unit-based compensation.

This press release contains forward-looking statements that reflect the current expectations of management of Crombie about Crombie's future results, performance, achievements, prospects, and opportunities. Wherever possible, words such as "may", "will", "estimate", "anticipate", "believe", "expect", "intend", "plan", "continue", and similar expressions have been used to identify these forward-looking statements. These statements reflect current beliefs and are based on information currently available to management of Crombie. Forward-looking statements necessarily involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties. A number of factors, including those discussed in the 2024 annual Management's Discussion and Analysis under "Risk Management" and the Annual Information Form for the year ended December 31, 2024 under "Risks", could cause actual results, performance, achievements, prospects, or opportunities to differ materially from the results discussed or implied in the forward-looking statements. These factors should be considered carefully, and a reader should not place undue reliance on the forward-looking statements. There can be no assurance that the expectations of management of Crombie will prove to be correct, and Crombie can give no assurance that actual results will be consistent with these forward-looking statements.

Specifically, this document includes, but is not limited to, forward-looking statements regarding expected timing, cost, and completion of our major and non-major developments, which may be impacted by the availability of labour, variation in market construction costs, and ability to attract tenants, and statements relating to the sustainability and potential long-term growth of our cash flows, which may be impacted by general economic conditions, the ability to attract tenants and our ability to grow our portfolio through acquisitions and development activity.

About Crombie REIT

Crombie invests in real estate with a vision of enriching communities together by building spaces and value today that leave a positive impact on tomorrow. As one of the country's leading owners, operators, and developers of quality real estate assets, Crombie's portfolio primarily includes grocery-anchored retail, retail-related industrial, and mixed-use residential properties. As at March 31, 2026, our portfolio contained 310 properties comprising approximately 19.4 million square feet, inclusive of joint ventures at Crombie's share, and a significant pipeline of future development projects. Learn more at www.crombie.ca.

To view the source version of this press release, please visit https://www.newsfilecorp.com/release/296297

Source: Crombie Real Estate Investment Trust