Burj Khalifa Developer continues to attract investors

Investors in the United Arab Emirates’s stock markets are marking a clear distinction on how they see some of the biggest listed real estate companies weathering the stormy times ahead. Emaar Properties PJSC, the developer of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, and Aldar Properties PJSC in Abu Dhabi, have gained this year as better-than-expected results and appealing dividends attracted investors. Damac Properties PJSC, on the other hand, has extended its declines with more outflows on the radar. U.A.E. real estate stocks have been battered in the past two years amid increasing supply and faltering demand as lower oil prices hurt economies across the Gulf. Dubai residential prices have dropped about 25 percent from a peak in 2014, according to Craig Plumb, head of Middle East research at broker Jones Lang LaSalle. He estimates a contraction in the single digits this year. Emaar Properties and Aldar have entities tied to the local government as their main shareholders. Both have succeeded in generating growth at the bottom of the cycle.