SL Green Realty Corp. (SLG Quick QuoteSLG - Free Report) announced the signing of a 10-year renewal and expansion lease deal with New York Life Insurance Company at the Graybar Building. This move, which involved a total of 114,709 square feet at the 420 Lexington Avenue property, signifies solid demand for the company’s properties from its existing tenants.

Lease Details

Specifically, the renewal involves 87,944 square feet of space which will cover the whole of the 15th floor and part of the 14th floor. On the other hand, the expansion runs for 26,765 square feet of space on a portion of the 14th floor. This deal, along with other leasing transactions, has led to more than 168,000 square feet of year-to-date leasing at the Graybar Building, which is encouraging.

Towering above Grand Central Terminal, the Graybar Building has good accessibility and boasts major tenants like Equinox, Metro-North Commuter Railroad Co., Pride Technologies besides New York Life Insurance.

Past Performance

SL Green reported first-quarter 2016 adjusted funds from operation (FFO) of $1.85 per share, exceeding the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.65 and the prior-year quarter figure of $1.51. A rise in combined same-store net operating income (NOI) aided results.

Zacks Rank & Stocks to Consider

SL Green currently has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). However, investors interested in the REIT industry may consider stocks like DCT Industrial Trust Inc. , Mack-Cali Realty Corp. and PS Business Parks Inc. . All these stocks carry a Zacks Rank #2 (Buy).

Note: FFO, a widely used metric to gauge the performance of REITs, is obtained after adding depreciation and amortization and other non-cash expenses to net income.

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