For 24 consecutive years, W.P. Carey (NYSE: WPC) increased its dividend annually. The streak went all the way back to the company's IPO. However, in one swift move, management upended the consistency with a major portfolio overhaul and a dividend cut. Wall Street was taken aback, and dividend-focused investors were hit hard by the news. But there's a bigger plan here if you can forgive the transgression of a dividend cut. Here are three important facts you need to know.

One of the most notable attractions investors have to W.P. Carey is that the real estate investment trust is among the most diversified landlords you can own. At the end of the third quarter, its portfolio was spread across the industrial (29% of assets), warehouse (23%), retail (17%), office (16%), and self-storage (4%) sectors, with the rest falling into a rather large "other" category.

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Source Fool.com