The goal of rational investors is to maximize total return. Total return is the complete return of an investment over a given time period. It includes all capital gains and any dividends or interest paid.

The 3 aspects of total return for stocks are: dividends, change in earnings-per-share, and changes in the price-to-earnings multiple. High dividend stocks are naturally appealing for income investors. However, not all high dividend stocks are buys.

High dividend stocks with unsustainable dividends and/or deteriorating fundamentals should be sold. This article will discuss 3 high dividend stocks to sell.

H&R Real Estate Investment Trust (HRUFF)

H&R Real Estate Investment Trust holds a portfolio of 374 properties across Canada and the United States. The portfolio includes 26 residential properties with a total of 8,929 rental units, mainly focused on expanding its presence in the U.S. Sun Belt.

Moreover, the REIT owns 64 industrial properties in Canada and one in the U.S., totaling 8.2 million square feet of space. Additionally, H&R holds 16 office properties across North America, comprising 4.5 million square feet, and 34 retail properties in Canada along with 233 retail properties in the U.S., totaling 5.2 million square feet.

The company’s strategy these days focuses on residential and industrial assets, while reducing its exposure to office and retail sectors.

The REIT pays dividends monthly and reports its financials in CAD. All figures in this report have been converted to USD unless otherwise noted.

On May 14th, 2025, H&R Real Estate Investment Trust reported its Q1 results. The REIT posted total rental revenue of $148.1 million for the quarter, a decrease from $150.9 million in Q1 2024.

This drop reflects the impact of property dispositions and shifting portfolio composition. H&R’s Funds from Operations was $59.8 million, essentially flat compared to $59.8 million in Q1 2024.

Sabine Royalty Trust (SBR)

Sabine Royalty Trust is an oil and gas trust set up in 1983 by Sabine Corporation. At initiation, the trust initially had an expected reserve life of 9 to 10 years but it has surpassed expectations by an impressive margin.

The trust consists of royalty and mineral interests in producing properties and proved oil and gas properties in Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas. It is roughly 2/3 oil and 1/3 gas in terms of revenues.

The trust’s assets are static in that no further properties can be added. The trust has no operations but is merely a pass-through vehicle for royalties. SBR had royalty income of $82.6 million in 2024.

In early May, SBR reported (5/9/25) financial results for the first quarter of fiscal 2025. Production of oil grew 22% but production of gas dipped -1% over the prior year’s quarter. In addition, the average realized prices of oil and gas decreased -26% and -7%, respectively. As a result, distributable cash flow per unit declined -6%, from $1.27 to $1.19.

The outlook for this year is negative, as OPEC has begun to unwind its production cuts and intends to boost its output by 2.0 million barrels per day until the end of 2026.

NorthWest Healthcare Properties (NWHUF)

Northwest Healthcare Properties is a globally diversified healthcare real estate investor and asset manager. Its footprint spans 172 income-producing properties across Canada, the U.S., Brazil, Europe, and Australasia.

The portfolio totals over 16 million square feet of gross leasable area, anchored by long-term, inflation-linked leases to high-quality healthcare operators.

The REIT also has a sizeable asset management business, overseeing $8.8 billion in AUM, of which $1.8 billion is owned directly and $4.0 billion managed through joint ventures. The REIT pays distributions on a monthly basis and reports its financials in CAD. All figures in this report have been converted to USD unless otherwise noted.

On May 14th, 2025, Northwest Healthcare REIT posted its Q1 results for the period ending March 31st, 2025. Revenue came in at $80 million, down 18% year-over-year due to significant asset sales.

Net operating income came in at $55.5 million, with occupancy holding at 96.4% and a 13.6-year WALE, supported by inflation-linked leases covering over 96% of rent.

Q1 FFO was $0.05 per unit, down from $0.08 last year, reflecting the smaller portfolio and ongoing deleveraging. During the quarter, the REIT sold $33.8 million of assets and used proceeds to repay over $478 million of debt, lowering its average interest rate to 5.33%.