8-K

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 8-K

CURRENT REPORT

Pursuant to Section 13 OR 15(d) of The Securities Exchange Act of 1934

Date of Report (Date of earliest event reported): January 12, 2024

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

Maryland	000-54691	27-1106076
(State or other jurisdiction of incorporation)	(Commission File Number)	(IRS Employer Identification No.)

11501 Northlake Drive Cincinnati, Ohio	45249
(Address of principal executive offices)	(Zip Code)

(513) 554-1110

(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

Check the appropriate box below if the Form 8-K filing is intended to simultaneously satisfy the filing obligation of the Registrant under any of the following provisions:

☐     Written communications pursuant to Rule 425 under the Securities Act (17 CFR 230.425)

☐      Soliciting material pursuant to Rule 14a-12 under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14a-12)

☐     Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 14d-2(b) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.14d-2(b))

☐      Pre-commencement communications pursuant to Rule 13e-4(c) under the Exchange Act (17 CFR 240.13e-4(c))

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

Title of each class	Trading Symbol(s)	Name of each exchange on which registered
Common Stock $0.01 par value per share	PECO	The Nasdaq Global Select Market

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is an emerging growth company as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act of 1933 (§230.405 of this chapter) or Rule 12b-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (§240.12b-2 of this chapter).

Emerging growth company ☐

If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐

Introductory Note

Unless otherwise indicated or unless the context requires otherwise, all references in this report to the “Company” refer to Phillips Edison & Company, Inc., together with its consolidated subsidiaries, including Phillips Edison Grocery Center Operating Partnership I, L.P., its “Operating Partnership.”

Item 8.01 Other Events.

On January 12, 2024, the Operating Partnership entered into an interest rate swap pursuant to an International Swaps and Derivatives Association Master Agreement. The swap has a notional amount of $150.0 million and swaps the daily Secured Overnight Financing Rate for a fixed rate of approximately 3.45% effective September 25, 2024 and maturing December 31, 2025. This instrument, which is designated as a cash flow hedge instrument, was entered into to mitigate the interest rate risk inherent in the Operating Partnership’s variable rate term loans and not for trading purposes.

On January 16, 2024, the Company issued a press release announcing the entry into the interest rate swap. A copy of the press release is attached hereto as exhibit 99.1 and is incorporated herein by reference.

Item  9.01   Financial Statements and Exhibits.

(d) Exhibits.

Exhibit Number	Description of Exhibit
99.1	Press Release dated January 16, 2024
104	Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as inline XBRL)

SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned hereunto duly authorized. 

	PHILLIPS EDISON & COMPANY, INC.
Dated: January 16, 2024	By:	/s/ Jennifer L. Robison
		Jennifer L. Robison
		Chief Accounting Officer and Senior Vice President (Principal Accounting Officer)

EX-99.1

Phillips Edison & Company Announces

Execution of Interest Rate Swap

CINCINNATI – January 16, 2024 - Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. (Nasdaq: PECO) (“PECO”), one of the nation’s largest owners and operators of grocery-anchored neighborhood shopping centers, today announced that it has entered into an interest rate swap agreement totaling $150.0 million.

On January 12, 2024, the Operating Partnership entered into an interest rate swap pursuant to an International Swaps and Derivatives Association Master Agreement. The swap has a notional amount of $150.0 million and swaps the daily Secured Overnight Financing Rate for a fixed rate of approximately 3.45% effective September 25, 2024 and maturing December 31, 2025. This instrument, which is designated as a cash flow hedge instrument, was entered into to mitigate the interest rate risk inherent in the Operating Partnership’s variable rate term loans and not for trading purposes.

Connect with PECO

For additional information, please visit https://www.phillipsedison.com/

Follow PECO on:

Twitter at https://twitter.com/PhillipsEdison

Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/phillipsedison.co

Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/phillips.edison/; and

Find PECO on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/phillipsedison&company

About Phillips Edison & Company

Phillips Edison & Company, Inc. (“PECO”) is one of the nation’s largest owners and operators of omni-channel grocery-anchored shopping centers. Founded in 1991, PECO has generated strong results through its vertically-integrated operating platform and national footprint of well-occupied shopping centers. PECO’s centers feature a mix of national and regional retailers providing necessity-based goods and services in fundamentally strong markets throughout the United States. PECO’s top grocery anchors include Kroger, Publix, Albertsons and Ahold Delhaize. As of September 30, 2023, PECO managed 295 shopping centers, including 275 wholly-owned centers comprising 31.4 million square feet across 31 states and 20 shopping centers owned in one institutional joint venture. PECO is exclusively focused on creating great omni-channel, grocery-anchored shopping experiences and improving communities, one neighborhood shopping center at a time.

PECO uses, and intends to continue to use, its Investors website, which can be found at https://investors.phillipsedison.com, as a means of disclosing material nonpublic information and for complying with its disclosure obligations under Regulation FD.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The Company intends such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and includes this statement for purposes of complying with the safe harbor provisions. Such forward-looking statements can generally be identified by the Company’s use of forward-looking terminology such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “believe,” “continue,” “seek,” “objective,” “goal,” “strategy,” “plan,” “focus,” “priority,” “should,” “could,” “potential,” “possible,” “look forward,” “optimistic,” or other similar words. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this release. Such statements include, but are not limited to (a) statements about the Company’s plans, strategies, initiatives, and prospects, (b) statements about the Company’s acquisitions, acquisition strategy and objectives and potential benefits from such acquisitions and (c) statements about the Company’s Unlevered IRR. Such statements are subject to known and unknown risks and uncertainties, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected or anticipated, including, without limitation: (i) changes in national, regional, or local economic climates; (ii) local market conditions, including an oversupply of space in, or a reduction in demand for, properties similar to those in the Company’s portfolio; (iii) vacancies, changes in market rental rates, and the need to periodically

repair, renovate, and re-let space; (iv) competition from other available shopping centers and the attractiveness of properties in the Company’s portfolio to its tenants; (v) the financial stability of the Company’s tenants, including, without limitation, their ability to pay rent; (vi) the Company’s ability to pay down, refinance, restructure, or extend its indebtedness as it becomes due; (vii) increases in the Company’s borrowing costs as a result of changes in interest rates and other factors; (viii) potential liability for environmental matters; (ix) damage to the Company’s properties from catastrophic weather and other natural events, and the physical effects of climate change; (x) the Company’s ability and willingness to maintain its qualification as a REIT in light of economic, market, legal, tax, and other considerations; (xi) changes in tax, real estate, environmental, and zoning laws; (xii) information technology security breaches; (xiii) the Company’s corporate responsibility initiatives; (xiv) loss of key executives; (xv) the concentration of the Company’s portfolio in a limited number of industries, geographies, or investments; (xvi) the economic, political, and social impact of, and uncertainty relating to, pandemics or other health crises; (xvii) the Company’s ability to re-lease its properties on the same or better terms, or at all, in the event of non-renewal or in the event the Company exercises its right to replace an existing tenant; (xviii) the loss or bankruptcy of the Company’s tenants; (xix) to the extent the Company is seeking to dispose of properties, the Company’s ability to do so at attractive prices or at all; and (xx) the impact of inflation on the Company and on its tenants. Additional important factors that could cause actual results to differ are described in the filings made from time to time by the Company with the SEC and include the risk factors and other risks and uncertainties described in the Company’s 2022 Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the SEC on February 21, 2023, as updated from time to time in the Company’s periodic and/or current reports filed with the SEC, which are accessible on the SEC’s website at www.sec.gov. Therefore, such statements are not intended to be a guarantee of the Company’s performance in future periods.

Except as required by law, the Company does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Investors

Kimberly Green, Head of Investor Relations

(513) 692-3399, kgreen@phillipsedison.com

XML

Cover	Jan. 12, 2024
Cover [Abstract]
Document Type	8-K
Document Period End Date	Jan. 12, 2024
Entity Registrant Name	Phillips Edison & Company, Inc.
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	MD
Entity File Number	000-54691
Entity Tax Identification Number	27-1106076
Entity Address, Address Line One	11501 Northlake Drive
Entity Address, City or Town	Cincinnati
Entity Address, State or Province	OH
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	45249
City Area Code	(513)
Local Phone Number	554-1110
Written Communications	false
Soliciting Material	false
Pre-commencement Tender Offer	false
Pre-commencement Issuer Tender Offer	false
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock$0.01 par value per share
Trading Symbol	PECO
Security Exchange Name	NASDAQ
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Central Index Key	0001476204
Amendment Flag	false