Legendary investor and Berkshire Hathaway chairman Warren Buffet has invested $377 million in Store Capital Corp (STOR), a REIT focused on investing in single-tenant real estate, reported CNBC on Monday. The investment, which has reportedly been 3-years in the making, indicates that Buffet is betting that not all brick-and-mortar real estate is doomed as a result of the growing competition from e commerce.
The investment represents a 9.8% share of the REIT, which specializes ‘experiential retail’, or service properties, such as gyms, preschools, theaters and craft centers, among others. These type of stores are said to be “internet resistant”, meaning they are immune to the recent wave of retail store closures resulting from the fierce competition from online retailers such as Amazon.
News of Buffet’s investment sent shares of the REIT up by 10% on Monday.