The Biggest Number From Realty Income's Latest Quarter: $3.1 Billion

Realty Income (NYSE: O) has trademarked the nickname "The Monthly Dividend Company." That's a bold statement, but it's one the real estate investment trust (REIT) has so far lived up to. It has increased its Dividend, which it pays monthly, for 29 consecutive years at a roughly 4.4% annualized rate. But the landlord is an industry giant and that has major implications for the future. It's also why $3.1 billion is such an important number to pull out from the company's second-quarter earnings results.

Sometimes saying a company is the biggest among its peers isn't really saying much at all because other competitors are similarly sized. But that's not the case with Realty Income. The REIT's market cap is $39 billion. The next largest REIT with a similar business model, W. P. Carey, weighs in at $13.5 billion. With more than 13,000 properties in its portfolio, Realty Income is dramatically bigger than others, as well.