Alexander's Shares Rise as Longleaf Highlights Value Gap
Alexander's stock gained 7.14% in a month after the REIT completed a non-core asset sale and leased its Queens shopping center to Target, prompting Longleaf Partners to highlight its overlooked free cash flow power.
Alexander's Inc. (ALX) rose 7.14% over the past month, closing at $276.21 on July 13, 2026, giving the real estate investment trust a market capitalization of $1.44 billion. The gains followed the completion of a non-core asset sale and the signing of a lease with Target that fully leased its key Queens shopping center.
The New York-based REIT's recent moves drew attention from Longleaf Partners, which highlighted Alexander's as a notable contributor in its second-quarter investor letter for its Small-Cap Fund. "It is getting harder for the market to ignore the steady FCF power and strong balance sheet of this company," the fund, managed by Southeastern Asset Management, wrote.
The praise for Alexander's came during a difficult quarter for Longleaf. The fund returned -2.47% in the second quarter, badly lagging the 21.49% surge in the Russell 2000 Index and the 17.19% gain in the Russell 2000 Value Index. Longleaf attributed its underperformance to unexpected moves in the information technology and industrials sectors, noting a broader market favor for speculative stocks.
Longleaf constructs its portfolio using median, unweighted multiples, prioritizing growth in free cash flow per share and strategic initiatives. Alongside Alexander's, the fund pointed to Empire State Realty Trust as another New York real estate company contributing to returns. "Both companies are on offense and able to continue closing their price to value gaps," Longleaf stated, noting that Empire State recently closed an asset sale implying a value for the rest of its business of more than twice its current share price.
Despite the recent share price appreciation—bringing the 52-week gain to 16.68%—Alexander's remains under the radar for many institutional investors. It does not rank among the 40 most popular stocks among hedge funds heading into 2026. Just 12 hedge fund portfolios held the stock at the end of the first quarter, unchanged from the prior quarter.
For market professionals, the divergence between Alexander's steady appreciation and Longleaf's broader struggles underscores a quarter where disciplined, cash-flow-focused valuation strategies were penalized. Market winners pushed far beyond fair value during the period. However, Longleaf maintains that its current portfolio holdings remain attractive on both price-to-value and price-to-free-cash-flow metrics.
