W.P. Carey (NYSE: WPC) is one of the most diversified landlords you can find. However, the shares have been hammered over the past year, underperforming the average real estate investment trust (REIT) and its closest-sized net-lease peers. And yet the generous 6.5% dividend yield is obviously quite attractive. What's going on, and what is W.P. Carey doing to get back on track?

W.P. Carey has a very long history in the net-lease market. Net leases require tenants to pay for most property-level operating costs. In fact, it was one of the first companies to popularize net-lease sale/leaseback deals as a way for companies to raise and use capital for other purposes, such as expanding their operations. It was also one of the first to bring the net-lease model to Europe, entering that market well ahead of net-lease giant Realty Income (NYSE: O). 

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Source Fool.com