PECO US Equity☆

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS

You should specifically consider the following material risks in addition to the other information contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The occurrence of any of the following risks might have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, financial condition, and cash flows. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial also may impair our business, operating results, financial condition, and cash flows.

Summary of Risk Factors

An investment in our common stock involves risks. You should carefully consider the risks summarized here and described more fully below.

Risks Related to Our Business and Operations

•Our revenues and cash flows will be affected by the success and economic viability of our anchor Neighbors.

•A significant percentage of our revenues is derived from non-anchor Neighbors, and our net income and ability to make distributions to stockholders may be adversely affected if these Neighbors are not successful.

•The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has had, and may continue to have, a negative effect on our and our Neighbors’ businesses, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, and liquidity.

•Long-term leases with our Neighbors may not result in fair value over time.

•We may be unable to sell shopping centers when desired, at an attractive price, or at all, and the sale of a property could cause significant tax payments.

•We face competition and other risks in pursuing acquisition opportunities that could increase the cost of such acquisitions and/or limit our ability to grow, and we may not be able to generate expected returns or successfully integrate completed acquisitions into our existing operations.

•We share ownership of our unconsolidated joint ventures and do not have exclusive decision-making power, and as such, we are unable to ensure that our objectives will be pursued.

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•Our real estate assets may decline in value and be subject to significant impairment losses, which may reduce our net income.

•We actively reinvest in our portfolio in the form of development and redevelopment projects, which have inherent risks that could adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

•The continued shift in retail sales towards e-commerce may adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

•Actual incremental unlevered yields for our development and redevelopment projects may vary from our underwritten incremental unlevered yield range.

Risks Related to Our Indebtedness and Liquidity

•We have substantial indebtedness, and we may need to incur additional indebtedness, including recourse debt, in the future, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure and Organization

•We and our consolidated subsidiary, the Operating Partnership, a Delaware limited partnership formed in December 2009, entered into tax protection agreements with certain protected partners, which may limit the Operating Partnership’s ability to sell or otherwise dispose of certain shopping centers and may require the Operating Partnership to maintain certain debt levels that otherwise would not be required to operate its business.

Risks Related to Our Real Estate Investment Trust (“REIT”) Status and Other Tax Risks

•Failure to qualify as a REIT would cause us to be taxed as a regular C corporation, which would substantially reduce funds available for distributions to stockholders.

•If the Operating Partnership fails to qualify as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we would fail to qualify as a REIT and would suffer adverse consequences.

•Complying with REIT requirements may cause us to forego otherwise attractive opportunities or liquidate otherwise attractive investments.

Risks Related to Business Continuity

•We and our Neighbors face risks relating to cybersecurity attacks, which could cause loss of confidential information and other disruptions to business operations, and compliance with new laws and regulations regarding cybersecurity and privacy may result in substantial costs and may decrease cash available for distributions.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock

•The market price and trading volume of shares of our common stock may be volatile.

•The number of shares of our common stock available for future issuance or sale could adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

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Risks Related to Our Business and Operations

Our revenues and cash flows will be affected by the success and economic viability of our anchor Neighbors.

Anchor Neighbors (a Neighbor occupying 10,000 or more square feet) occupy large stores in our shopping centers, pay a significant portion of the total rent at a property, and contribute to the success of other Neighbors by attracting shoppers to the property. Our revenues and cash flows may be adversely affected by the loss of revenues and additional costs in the event a significant anchor Neighbor: (i) becomes bankrupt or insolvent; (ii) experiences a downturn in its business; (iii) defaults on its lease; (iv) decides not to renew its lease as it expires; (v) renews its lease at lower rental rates and/or requires tenant improvements; or (vi) renews its lease but reduces its store size, which results in down-time and additional tenant improvement costs to us to re-lease the space. Some anchors have the right to vacate their space and may prevent us from re-tenanting by continuing to comply and pay rent in accordance with their lease agreement. Vacated anchor space, including space owned by the anchor, can reduce rental revenues generated by the shopping center in other spaces because of the loss of the departed anchor's customer drawing power. In the event that we are unable to re-lease the vacated space to a new anchor Neighbor in such situations, we may incur additional expenses in order to re-model the space to be able to re-lease the space to more than one Neighbor.

If a significant Neighbor vacates a property, co-tenancy clauses in select lease contracts may allow other Neighbors to modify or terminate their rent or lease obligations. Co-tenancy clauses have several variants: (i) they may allow a Neighbor to postpone a store opening if certain other Neighbors fail to open their stores; (ii) they may allow a Neighbor to close its store prior to lease expiration if another Neighbor closes its store prior to lease expiration; or (iii) they may allow a Neighbor to pay reduced levels of rent until a certain number of Neighbors open their stores within the same shopping center.

The leases of some anchor Neighbors may permit the anchor Neighbor to transfer its lease to another retailer. The transfer to a new anchor Neighbor could cause customer traffic in the retail center to decrease and thereby reduce the income generated by that retail center. A lease transfer to a new anchor Neighbor could also allow other Neighbors to make reduced rental payments or to terminate their leases.

A significant percentage of our revenues is derived from non-anchor Neighbors, and our net income and ability to make distributions to stockholders may be adversely affected if these Neighbors are not successful.

A significant percentage of our revenues is derived from non-anchor Neighbors, some of which may be more vulnerable to negative economic conditions as they typically have more limited resources than anchor Neighbors. Significant Neighbor distress across our portfolio could adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows, and our ability to service our debt and make distributions to our stockholders. A property may incur vacancies either by the expiration of a Neighbor lease, the continued default of a Neighbor under its lease, or the early termination of a lease by a Neighbor. In order to maintain occupancy, we may have to offer inducements, such as free rent and tenant improvements, to compete for the right type or mix of non-anchor Neighbors in our shopping centers. In addition, if we are unable to attract additional or replacement Neighbors, the resale value of the property could be diminished, even below our acquisition costs, because the market value of a particular property depends principally upon the value of the cash flows generated by the leases associated with that property.

We face considerable competition in the leasing market and may be unable to renew leases or re-lease space as leases expire. Consequently, we may be required to make rent or other concessions and/or incur significant capital expenditures to retain and attract Neighbors, which could adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

There are numerous shopping venues, including other shopping centers and e-commerce, that compete with our portfolio in attracting and retaining retailers. This competition may hinder our ability to attract and retain Neighbors, leading to increased vacancy rates, reduced rents, and/or increased capital investments. For leases that renew, rental rates upon renewal may be lower than current rates. For those leases that do not renew, we may not be able to promptly re-lease the space on favorable terms or with reasonable capital investments, or at all. In these situations, our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations could be adversely affected.

We may be unable to collect balances due from Neighbors in bankruptcy.

The bankruptcy or insolvency of a significant Neighbor or a number of smaller Neighbors may adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows and results of operations, and our ability to pay distributions to our stockholders. Generally, under bankruptcy law, a debtor Neighbor has the legal right to reject any or all of their leases and close related stores. If the Neighbor rejects the lease, we will have a claim against the Neighbor’s bankruptcy estate. Although rent owing for the period between filing for bankruptcy and rejection of the lease may be afforded administrative expense priority and paid in full, pre-bankruptcy arrears and amounts owing under the remaining term of the lease will be afforded general unsecured claim status (absent collateral securing the claim). General unsecured claims are the last claims paid in a bankruptcy, and, therefore, funds may not be available to pay such claims in full. Moreover, amounts owing under the remaining term of the lease will be capped. As a result, it is likely that we would recover substantially less than the full value of any unsecured claims we hold. Additionally, we may incur significant expense to recover our claim and to re-lease the vacated space. In the event that a Neighbor with a significant number of leases in our shopping centers files bankruptcy and rejects its leases, we may experience a significant reduction in our revenues and may not be able to collect all pre-petition amounts owed by the bankrupt Neighbor.

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has had, and may continue to have, a negative effect on our and our Neighbors’ businesses, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, and liquidity.

In March 2020, the World Health Organization declared COVID-19 a global pandemic. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused, and may continue to cause, significant disruptions to the United States and global economy and has contributed to significant volatility and negative pressure in financial markets. Many countries, including the United States, reacted by instituting quarantines, restrictions on travel, and/or mandatory closures of businesses. Certain states and cities, including where our

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shopping centers are located, also reacted by instituting quarantines, restrictions on travel, “shelter-in-place” or “stay-at-home” rules, restrictions on types of businesses that could continue to operate, and/or restrictions on the types of construction projects that could continue.

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted our historical business and financial performance. While we believe our collections have returned to levels consistent with those prior to the onset of the pandemic, there are no assurances that the COVID-19 pandemic, or another pandemic, will not have a further negative impact on our business and financial performance in the future. Our retail and service-based Neighbors depend on in-person interactions with their customers to generate unit-level profitability. Especially at its peak, the COVID-19 pandemic decreased customers’ willingness to frequent, and mandated “shelter-in-place” or “stay-at-home” orders prevented customers from frequenting, our Neighbors’ businesses, and a continued or renewed reluctance, or renewed mandates, could result in our Neighbors’ inability to maintain profitability and make timely rental payments to us under their leases or to otherwise seek lease modifications or to declare bankruptcy. At the peak of the pandemic-related closure activity, for our wholly-owned shopping centers and those owned through our joint ventures, our temporary closures reached approximately 37% of all Neighbor spaces, totaling 27% of our ABR and 22% of our gross leasable area (“GLA”). All temporarily closed Neighbors have since been permitted to reopen; however, certain of our Neighbors have permanently closed and/or declared bankruptcy as a result of the effects of the pandemic. Others may still be limiting the number of customers allowed in their stores, or have modified their operations in other ways that may impact their profitability, either as a result of government mandates or as self-elected efforts to reduce the spread of COVID-19. These actions, as well as the continuing economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, or worsening impacts in the future, could result in increased permanent store closures. In addition to the permanent closures that have occurred in our portfolio, this could reduce the demand for leasing space in our shopping centers and result in a decline in average rental rates on expiring leases.

We believe substantially all our Neighbors, including those that were required to temporarily close under governmental mandates, are contractually obligated to continue with their rent payments as documented in our lease agreements with them. However, we negotiated relief for a small subset of our Neighbors, including rent deferrals. As of January 20, 2022, inclusive of our prorated share of shopping centers owned through our joint ventures, we had approximately $3.3 million of outstanding payment plans with our Neighbors and we expect to receive remaining amounts owed to us from these plans over a weighted-average term of approximately ten months. As of October 20, 2021, we have collected approximately 96% of rent and recoveries billed during the second through fourth quarter of 2020, and as of January 20, 2022, we have collected approximately 99% of rent and recoveries billed during 2021. Despite seeing improvements in collections, there is no guarantee that we will ultimately be able to collect on current and past due amounts, particularly if there is a worsening of the pandemic or tightening of restrictions in the future. Moreover, in the event of any default by a Neighbor under its lease agreement or relief agreement, we may not be able to fully recover, and/or may experience delays in recovering and additional costs in enforcing our rights as landlord to recover, amounts due to us under the terms of the lease agreement and/ or relief agreement.

Moreover, the worsening of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, or another pandemic, and/or renewed restrictions intended to prevent and mitigate its spread, and resulting consumer behavior and economic slowdown or recession could have additional adverse effects on our business in the future, including with regards to:

•the ability and willingness of our Neighbors to renew their leases upon expiration, our ability to re-lease the properties on the same or better terms in the event of nonrenewal or in the event we exercise our right to replace an existing Neighbor, and obligations we may incur in connection with the replacement of an existing Neighbor, particularly in light of the adverse impact to the financial health of many retailers and service providers that has historically occurred as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic;

•our ability to pay distributions to our stockholders, or to make distributions in shares of our common stock rather than solely in cash, which could result in our stockholders having a tax liability with respect to such distributions that exceeds the amount of cash received, if any;

•an increase in unemployment, like what occurred in the short-term in connection with the COVID-19 pandemic, and its effect on consumer behavior, and negative consequences that would occur if these trends are not reversed in a timely way;

•state, local, or industry-initiated efforts, such as a rent freeze for Neighbors or a suspension of a landlord’s ability to enforce evictions, which may affect our ability to collect rent or enforce remedies for the failure to pay rent;

•severe disruption and instability in the global financial markets or deteriorations in credit and financing conditions, which could make it difficult for us to access debt and equity capital on attractive terms, or at all, and impact our ability to fund business operations and activities and repay liabilities on a timely basis;

•the potential negative impact on the health of our personnel, particularly if a significant number of them and/or key personnel are impacted, and the potential impact of adaptations to our operations in order to protect our personnel, such as remote work arrangements, could introduce operational risk, including but not limited to cybersecurity risks, and could impair our ability to manage our business; and

•the heightening of many of the other risks and uncertainties described in this “Risk Factors” section.

While the unpredictable nature of the COVID-19 pandemic precludes any prediction as to its ultimate adverse impact, a worsening of the economic, political, and social environment as a result presents material risks and uncertainties with respect to our and our Neighbors’ business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity, and ability to satisfy debt service obligations.

Long-term leases with our Neighbors may not result in fair value over time.

From time to time, we enter into long-term leases with our Neighbors. Long-term leases do not typically allow for significant changes in rental payments and do not expire in the near term. If we do not accurately judge the potential for increases in

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market rental rates when negotiating these long-term leases, significant increases in future property operating costs could result in receiving less than fair value from these leases, which would adversely affect our revenues and the funds available for distributions to stockholders.

We may be restricted from leasing space to certain retailers.

Some of our leases contain provisions that give a specific retailer the exclusive right to sell particular types of goods or services within that shopping center. These provisions may limit the number and types of prospective retailers to which we are able to lease space in a particular shopping center, which may result in increased costs to find a permissible retailer and decreased revenues if one or more spaces sit vacant or we have to accept lower rental rates or a less qualified retailer to fill the space.

We may be unable to sell shopping centers when desired, at an attractive price, or at all, and the sale of a property could cause significant tax payments.

Our shopping centers, including related tangible and intangible assets, represent the majority of our total consolidated assets and they may not be readily convertible to cash. As a result, our ability to sell one or more of our shopping centers, including shopping centers held in unconsolidated joint ventures, in response to changes in economic, industry, or other conditions, may be limited. The real estate market is affected by many factors that are beyond our control, including, but not limited to general economic conditions, availability and terms of financing, interest rates, supply and demand for space, and other factors. There may be less demand for lower quality shopping centers that we have identified for ultimate disposition in markets with uncertain economic or retail environments, and where buyers are more reliant on the availability of third party mortgage financing. If we want to sell a property, we can provide no assurance that we will be able to dispose of it in the desired time period or at all, or that the sale price of a property will be attractive at the relevant time or even exceed the carrying value of our investment. Moreover, if a property is mortgaged, we may not be able to obtain a release of the lien on that property without the payment of a substantial prepayment penalty, which may restrict our ability to dispose of the property, even though the sale might otherwise be desirable.

Some of our shopping centers have a low tax basis, which may result in a taxable gain on sale. We intend to utilize tax-deferred exchanges under Section 1031 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, (the “IRC”), to mitigate taxable income (“Section 1031 Exchanges”); however, there can be no assurance that we will identify exchange shopping centers that meet our investment objectives for acquisitions. In the event that we do not utilize Section 1031 Exchanges, we may be required to distribute the gain proceeds to stockholders or pay income tax, which may reduce our cash flows available to fund our commitments and distributions to stockholders. Moreover, it is possible that future legislation could be enacted that could modify or repeal the laws with respect to Section 1031 Exchanges, which could make it more difficult or impossible for us to dispose of shopping centers on a tax-deferred basis.

We face competition and other risks in pursuing acquisition opportunities that could increase the cost of such acquisitions and/or limit our ability to grow, and we may not be able to generate expected returns or successfully integrate completed acquisitions into our existing operations.

We continue to evaluate the market for acquisition opportunities, and we may acquire shopping centers when we believe strategic opportunities exist. Our ability to acquire shopping centers on favorable terms and successfully integrate, operate, reposition, or redevelop them is subject to several risks. We may be unable to acquire a desired property because of competition from other real estate investors, including from other well-capitalized REITs and institutional investment funds. Even if we are able to acquire a desired property, competition from such investors may significantly increase the purchase price. We may also abandon acquisition activities after expending resources to pursue such opportunities. Once we acquire new shopping centers, these shopping centers may not yield expected returns for several reasons, including: (i) failure to achieve expected occupancy and/or rent levels within the projected time frame, if at all; (ii) inability to successfully integrate new shopping centers into existing operations; and (iii) exposure to fluctuations in the general economy, including due to the time lag between signing definitive documentation to acquire a new property and the closing of the acquisition. If any of these events occur, the cost of the acquisition may exceed initial estimates or the expected returns may not achieve those originally contemplated, which could adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

We share ownership of our unconsolidated joint ventures and do not have exclusive decision-making power, and as such, we are unable to ensure that our objectives will be pursued.

We have invested capital, and may invest additional capital, in unconsolidated joint ventures (instead of directly acquiring wholly-owned assets), for which we do not have exclusive decision-making power over the development, financing, leasing, management, and other aspects of these investments. As a result, the institutional joint venture partners might have interests or goals that are inconsistent with ours, take action contrary to our interests, or otherwise impede our objectives. Conflicts arising between us and our partners may be difficult to manage and/or resolve and it could be difficult to manage or otherwise monitor the existing business arrangements.

In addition, unconsolidated joint venture arrangements may decrease our ability to manage risk and implicate additional risks, such as: (i) potentially inferior financial capacity, diverging business goals and strategies and the need for our venture partners’ continued cooperation; (ii) the joint venture partners might become bankrupt, suffer a deterioration in their creditworthiness, or fail to fund their share of required capital contributions; (iii) our inability to take actions with respect to the unconsolidated joint ventures’ activities that we believe are favorable to us if our institutional joint venture partners do not agree; (iv) our inability to control the legal entities that have title to the real estate associated with the joint ventures; (v) our lenders may not be easily able to sell our joint venture assets and investments or may view them less favorably as collateral, which could negatively affect our liquidity and capital resources; (vi) our institutional joint venture partners can take actions that we may not be able to anticipate or prevent, which could result in negative impacts on our debt and equity; and (vii) our institutional joint venture partners’ business decisions or other actions or omissions may result in harm to our reputation or adversely affect the value of our investments.

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Our real estate assets may decline in value and be subject to significant impairment losses, which may reduce our net income.

Our real estate properties are carried at cost less depreciation unless circumstances indicate that the carrying value of these assets may not be recoverable. We routinely evaluate whether there are any impairment indicators, including property operating performance, property occupancy trends, and actual marketing or listing price of properties being targeted for disposition, such that the value of the real estate properties (including any related tangible or intangible assets or liabilities) may not be recoverable. If, through our evaluation, we determine that a given asset exhibits one or more such indicators, we then compare the current carrying value of the asset to the estimated undiscounted cash flows that are directly associated with the use and ultimate disposition of the asset. Our estimated cash flows are based on several key assumptions, including rental rates, costs of Neighbor improvements, leasing commissions, anticipated holding periods, and assumptions regarding the residual value upon disposition, including the estimated exit capitalization rate. These key assumptions are subjective in nature and may differ materially from actual results. Changes in our disposition strategy or changes in the marketplace may alter the holding period of an asset or asset group, which may result in an impairment loss and such loss may be material to our financial condition or operating performance. To the extent that the carrying value of the asset exceeds the estimated undiscounted cash flows, an impairment loss is recognized equal to the excess of carrying value over fair value.

The fair value of real estate assets is subjective and is determined through the use of comparable sales information and other market data if available. These subjective assessments have a direct effect on our net income because recording an impairment charge results in an immediate negative adjustment to net income, which may be material. During the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, we incurred impairment charges of $6.8 million and $2.4 million, respectively, related to real estate assets that were under contract or actively being marketed for sale at a disposition price that was less than the carrying value. We have recorded such impairment charges as we have been selling non-core assets to improve the quality of our portfolio. We continue to sell non-core assets and may potentially recognize impairments in future quarters. Accordingly, there can be no assurance that we will not record additional impairment charges in the future related to our assets.

We actively reinvest in our portfolio in the form of development and redevelopment projects, which have inherent risks that could adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

We actively pursue opportunities for outparcel development and existing property redevelopment. Development and redevelopment activities require various government and other approvals for entitlements and any delay in or failure to receive such approvals may significantly delay this process or prevent us from recovering our investment. We are subject to other risks associated with these activities, including the following:

•we may be unable to lease developments and redevelopments to full occupancy on a timely basis;

•the occupancy rates and rents of a completed project may not be sufficient to make the project profitable;

•actual costs of a project may exceed original estimates, possibly making the project unprofitable;

•delays in the development or construction process may increase our costs;

•construction cost increases may reduce investment returns on development and redevelopment opportunities;

•we may abandon redevelopment opportunities and lose our investment due to adverse market conditions;

•the size of our development and redevelopment pipeline may strain our labor or capital capacity to complete projects within targeted timelines and may reduce our investment returns;

•a reduction in the demand for new retail space may reduce our future development and redevelopment activities, which in turn may reduce our net operating income; and/or

•changes in the level of future development activity may adversely impact our results from operations by reducing the amount of internal general overhead costs that may be capitalized.

If we fail to reinvest in our portfolio or maintain its attractiveness to retailers and consumers, if our capital improvements are not successful, or if retailers or consumers perceive that shopping at other venues (including e-commerce) is more convenient, cost-effective, or otherwise more compelling, our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations could be adversely affected.

Adverse economic, regulatory, market, and real estate conditions may adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

Our portfolio is predominantly comprised of omni-channel neighborhood grocery-anchored shopping centers, and during the year ended December 31, 2021, our holdings in Florida and California accounted for 12.4% and 10.7%, respectively, of our ABR (including our wholly-owned portfolio as well as the prorated portion of shopping centers owned through our joint ventures). Therefore, our performance is subject to risks associated with owning and operating neighborhood omni-channel grocery-anchored shopping centers, and may be further subject to additional risk as a result of the geographic concentration noted above. Such risks include, but are not limited to: (i) changes in national, regional, and local economic climates or demographics; (ii) competition from other available shopping centers and e-commerce, and the attractiveness of our shopping centers to our Neighbors; (iii) increased competition for real estate assets targeted by our investment strategies; (iv) adverse local conditions, such as oversupply or reduction in demand for similar shopping centers in an area and changes in real estate zoning laws that may reduce the desirability of real estate in an area; (v) vacancies, changes in market rental rates, and the need to periodically repair, renovate, and re-lease space; (vi) ongoing disruption and/or consolidation in the retail sector; (vii) increases in operating costs, due to inflation or otherwise, including common area expenses, utilities, insurance, and real estate taxes, which are relatively inflexible and generally do not decrease if revenue or occupancy decreases; (viii) increases in the costs to repair, renovate, and re-lease space; (ix) changes in interest rates and the availability of financing, which may render the sale or refinance of a property or loan difficult or unattractive; (x) earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, or other natural disasters, civil unrest, terrorist acts, or acts of war, which may result in uninsured or underinsured losses; (xi) epidemics, pandemics, or other widespread outbreaks or resulting public fear that disrupt the businesses of our Neighbors causing them to fail to pay rent on time or at all; and (xii) changes in laws and governmental regulations, including those governing usage, zoning, the environment, and taxes. Such risks also include, but are not limited to, those that could impact

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the financial stability of our Neighbors, including their ability to pay rent and expense reimbursements, such as supply chain disruptions and constraints, inflationary pressures throughout the supply chain, labor shortages and inflationary pressures on wages, increases in retail theft, and other risks and uncertainties described elsewhere in this "Risk Factors" section. These and other factors could adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

The continued shift in retail sales towards e-commerce may adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

Retailers are increasingly affected by e-commerce and changes in customer buying habits, which have been further accelerated as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, including the delivery or curbside pick-up of items ordered online. Retailers are considering these e-commerce trends when making decisions regarding their brick and mortar stores and how they will compete and innovate in a rapidly changing e-commerce environment. Many retailers in our shopping centers provide services or sell goods that are unable to be performed online (such as haircuts, massages, and fitness centers) or that have historically been less likely to be purchased online (such as grocery stores, restaurants, and coffee shops); however, the continuing increase in e-commerce sales in all retail categories (including online orders for immediate delivery or pickup in store) may cause retailers to adjust the size or number of retail locations in the future or close stores. Our grocer Neighbors are incorporating e-commerce concepts through home delivery or curbside pickup, which could reduce foot traffic at our centers and adversely affect our occupancy and rental rates. Changes in shopping trends as a result of the growth in e-commerce may also affect the profitability of retailers that do not adapt to changes in market conditions. While we devote considerable effort and resources to analyze and respond to Neighbor trends, Neighbor and consumer preferences, and consumer spending patterns, we cannot predict with certainty what future Neighbors will want, what future retail spaces will look like, or how much revenue will be generated at traditional brick and mortar locations. If we are unable to anticipate and respond promptly to trends in the market (such as space for a drive through or curbside pickup), our occupancy levels and rental rates may decline, and our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations may be adversely impacted.

Actual incremental unlevered yields for our development and redevelopment projects may vary from our underwritten incremental unlevered yield range.

As part of our standard development and redevelopment underwriting process, we analyze the yield for each project and establish a range of target yields (“underwritten incremental unlevered yields”). Underwritten incremental unlevered yields reflect the yield we target to generate from each project upon expected stabilization and are calculated as the estimated incremental NOI for a project at stabilization divided by its estimated net project investment. The estimated incremental NOI is the difference between the estimated annualized NOI we target to generate from a project upon stabilization and the estimated annualized NOI without the planned improvements. Underwritten incremental unlevered yield does not include peripheral impacts, such as lease rollover risk or the impact on the long term value of the property upon sale or disposition.

Underwritten incremental unlevered yields are based solely on our estimates, using data available to us in our development and redevelopment underwriting processes. The actual total cost to complete a development or redevelopment project may differ substantially from our estimates due to various factors, including unanticipated expenses, delays in the estimated start and/or completion date of planned development projects, effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and other contingencies. In addition, the actual incremental NOI from our planned development and redevelopment activities may differ substantially from our estimates based on numerous other factors, including delays and/or difficulties in leasing and stabilizing a development or redevelopment project, failure to obtain estimated occupancy and rental rates, inability to collect anticipated rental revenues, Neighbor bankruptcies, and unanticipated expenses that we cannot pass on to our Neighbors. Actual incremental unlevered yields may vary from our underwritten incremental unlevered yield range based on the actual total cost to complete a project and its incremental NOI at stabilization.

Risks Related to Our Indebtedness and Liquidity

We have substantial indebtedness, and we may need to incur additional indebtedness, including recourse debt, in the future, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

We have obtained, and are likely to continue to obtain, lines of credit, and other long-term financing that are secured by our shopping centers and other assets. On December 31, 2021, we had indebtedness of $1.9 billion comprised of $1.3 billion in unsecured debt, $0.4 billion in outstanding secured loan facilities, and $0.2 billion in mortgage loans and finance lease obligations. In connection with executing our business strategies, we expect to evaluate additional acquisitions and strategic investments, and we may elect to finance these endeavors by incurring additional indebtedness. We may also incur mortgage debt on shopping centers that we already own in order to obtain funds to acquire additional shopping centers or make other capital investments. In addition, we may borrow as necessary or advisable to ensure that we maintain our qualification as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, including borrowings to satisfy the REIT requirement that we distribute at least 90% of our annual REIT taxable income to our stockholders (computed without regard to the dividends-paid deduction and excluding net capital gain).However, we cannot guarantee that we will be able to obtain any such borrowings on satisfactory terms. Additionally, if we have insufficient income to service any recourse debt obligations, our lenders could institute proceedings against us to foreclose upon our assets.

If we mortgage a property and there is a shortfall between the cash flows from that property and the cash flows needed to service mortgage debt on that property, then the amount of cash available for distributions to stockholders may be reduced. In addition, incurring mortgage debt increases the risk of loss of a property because defaults on indebtedness secured by a property may result in lenders initiating foreclosure actions. If any mortgages contain cross-collateralization or cross-default provisions, a default on a single property could affect multiple shopping centers. Additionally, we may give full or partial guarantees to lenders of mortgage debt on behalf of the entities that own our shopping centers. When we give a guaranty on behalf of an entity that owns one of our shopping centers, we will be responsible to the lender for satisfaction of the debt if it is not paid by such entity. Currently, we are a limited guarantor on a mortgage loan for two of our unconsolidated joint ventures. In each case, our guarantee is limited to being the non-recourse carveout guarantor and the environmental indemnitor.

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High debt levels could have material adverse consequences for the Company, including hindering our ability to adjust to changing market, industry, or economic conditions; limiting our ability to access the capital markets to refinance maturing debt or to fund acquisitions or emerging businesses; requiring the use of a substantial portion of our cash flows for the payment of principal and interest on our debt, thereby limiting the amount of free cash flow available for future operations, acquisitions, distributions, stock repurchases, or other uses; making us more vulnerable to economic or industry downturns, including interest rate increases; and placing us at a competitive disadvantage compared to less leveraged competitors.

We may not be able to access financing on favorable terms, or at all.

We may finance our assets over the long-term through a variety of means, including unsecured bonds, credit facilities, secured pools, issuance of commercial mortgage-backed securities, and other structured financings. Our ability to execute this strategy will depend on various market conditions that are beyond our control, including lack of capital availability and greater credit spreads. We cannot be certain that these markets will remain an efficient source of long-term financing for our assets. If our strategy is not viable, we will have to find alternative forms of long-term financing for our assets. This could subject us to more recourse indebtedness and the risk that debt service on less efficient forms of financing would require a larger portion of our cash flows, thereby reducing cash available for distribution to our stockholders and funds available for operations as well as for future business opportunities.

Covenants in our loan agreements may restrict our operations and adversely affect our financial condition and ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

When providing financing, a lender may impose restrictions on us that affect our distribution and operating policies and our ability to incur additional debt. Our loan agreements may contain covenants that limit our ability to further mortgage a property or discontinue insurance coverage. In addition, loan agreements may limit our ability to enter into or terminate certain operating or lease agreements related to a property. Mortgage debt and other property-level debt that we incur may also limit our ability to transfer properties from one subsidiary to another. These or other limitations would decrease our operating flexibility and our ability to achieve our operating objectives, which may adversely affect our financial condition and ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

Covenants in certain of our loan agreements specify that certain named individuals must remain a member of management and/or the Board or require certain level of management or Board continuity in connection with a fundamental transaction.

A number of our loan agreements contain covenants that require certain named individuals, including Mr. Edison, to continue serving as a member of management and/or the Board or require certain levels of senior management and/or Board continuity following a change of control or other fundamental transaction. If such individuals were to depart from the Company within a specified time prior to such transaction or within such specified time after such a transaction, we may be required to negotiate waivers of such covenants or obtain replacement financing, which we may not be able to do on satisfactory terms or at all.

Higher market capitalization rates and lower NOI for our shopping centers may adversely impact our ability to sell shopping centers and fund developments and acquisitions, and may dilute earnings.

As part of our capital recycling strategy, we sell shopping centers that no longer meet our growth and investment objectives due to stabilization or perceived future risk. Sales proceeds are then used to fund the construction of developments, redevelopments, expansions, and acquisitions, and to repay debt. An increase in market capitalization rates or a decline in NOI may cause a reduction in the value of shopping centers identified for sale, which would have an adverse effect on the amount of cash generated. Additionally, the sale of shopping centers resulting in significant tax gains may require higher distributions to our stockholders in order to maintain our REIT status or payment of additional income taxes. We intend to utilize Section 1031 Exchanges to mitigate taxable income. However, there can be no assurance that we will identify exchange shopping centers that meet our investment objectives for acquisitions.

The phase-out, replacement, or unavailability of LIBOR could affect interest rates for a significant portion of our indebtedness, as well as our ability to obtain future debt financing on favorable terms.

As of December 31, 2021, we had approximately $1.0 billion of indebtedness tied to the London Interbank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”), $0.9 billion of which was fixed through the use of interest rate swaps. Additionally, we have a revolving credit facility tied to LIBOR with a capacity of $500 million, on which we had no outstanding balance (excluding letters of credit in an amount of $10.7 million) as of December 31, 2021. In 2017, the Financial Conduct Authority (the regulatory authority over LIBOR) stated that it would phase out LIBOR as a benchmark, and in 2021 it announced that all LIBOR settings will either cease to be provided by any administrator or no longer be representative immediately after December 31, 2021, in the case of 1 week and 2 month U.S. dollar (“USD”) settings, and immediately after June 30, 2023, in the case of the remaining USD settings. The Federal Reserve Board has also advised banks to stop writing new USD LIBOR contracts. The Alternative Reference Rate Committee, a committee convened by the Federal Reserve that includes major market participants, has identified the Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”), a new index calculated by short-term repurchase agreements, backed by U.S. Treasury securities, as its preferred alternative rate for LIBOR in the U.S. Working groups formed by financial regulators in other jurisdictions, including the U.K., the European Union, Japan, and Switzerland, have also recommended alternatives to LIBOR denominated in their local currencies. Although SOFR appears to be the preferred replacement rate for USD LIBOR, it is unclear if other benchmarks may emerge or if other rates will be adopted outside of the United States. At this time, it is not possible to predict how markets will respond to SOFR or other alternative rates as the transition away from the LIBOR benchmarks is anticipated in the coming years. Accordingly, the outcome of these reforms is uncertain, and any changes in the methods by which LIBOR is determined or regulatory activity related to LIBOR’s phaseout could cause LIBOR to perform differently than in the past or cease to exist. The consequences of these developments cannot be entirely predicted, and there can be no assurance that they will not result in financial market disruptions, significant increases in benchmark interest rates, substantially higher financing costs or a shortage of available debt financing, any of which could have an adverse effect on us.

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Increases in interest rates could increase the amount of our loan payments and adversely affect our ability to pay distributions to our stockholders.

Although a significant amount of our outstanding debt has fixed interest rates, we borrow funds at variable interest rates under our credit facilities and term loans. As of December 31, 2021, 1.3% of our outstanding debt was variable rate debt. Increases in interest rates would increase our interest expense on any variable rate debt to the extent we have not hedged our exposure to changes in interest rates. In addition, increases in interest rates will affect the terms under which we refinance our existing debt as it matures, to the extent we have not hedged our exposure to changes in interest rates, resulting in higher interest rates and increased interest expense. Either of these events would reduce our future earnings and cash flows, which may adversely affect our ability to service our debt and meet our other obligations and also may reduce the amount we are able to distribute to stockholders.

Hedging activity may expose us to risks, including the risks that a counterparty will not perform and that the hedge will not yield the economic benefits we anticipate, which may adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

From time to time, we manage our exposure to interest rate volatility by using interest rate hedging arrangements that involve risk, including but not limited to, the risk that counterparties may fail to honor their obligations under these arrangements, that these arrangements may not be effective in reducing our exposure to interest rate changes, and that we may be required to pay the counterparty if interest rates decrease in the future below the hedged amount. There can be no assurance that our hedging arrangements will qualify for hedge accounting or that our hedging activities will have the desired beneficial impact on our results of operations. Should we desire to terminate a hedging agreement, there may be significant costs and cash requirements involved to fulfill our obligations under the hedging agreement. Failure to hedge effectively against interest rate changes may adversely affect our financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Corporate Structure and Organization

The Operating Partnership’s limited partnership agreement grants certain rights and protections to the limited partners, which allows them to vote in connection with a change of control transaction that might involve a premium price for shares of our common stock.

The Operating Partnership’s limited partnership agreement grants certain rights and protections to the limited partners, including granting them the right to vote in connection with a change of control transaction. Any such change of control transaction is required to be approved by holders of ownership units of the Operating Partnership (“OP units”) (including our Company and its subsidiaries) at the same level of approval as required for approval by holders of shares of our common stock. For purposes of any such vote, we will be deemed to vote the OP units held by us and our subsidiaries in proportion to the manner in which all of our outstanding shares of common stock were voted at a stockholders meeting relating to such transaction. As of January 31, 2022, we would have directly or indirectly controlled approximately 88.4% of the OP units. Furthermore, as of January 31, 2022, Mr. Edison had voting control over approximately 6.6% of the OP units (considering OP units owned by us), and therefore could have influence over votes on change of control transactions.

We and our consolidated subsidiary, the Operating Partnership, entered into tax protection agreements with certain protected partners, which may limit the Operating Partnership’s ability to sell or otherwise dispose of certain shopping centers and may require the Operating Partnership to maintain certain debt levels that otherwise would not be required to operate its business.

We and the Operating Partnership entered into a tax protection agreement on October 4, 2017 (the “2017 TPA”) with, among others, Mr. Edison, and certain entities controlled by him at the closing of a transaction in May 2017 pursuant to which we internalized our management structure through the acquisition of certain real estate assets and the third party investment management business of Phillips Edison Limited Partnership (“PELP”) in exchange for OP units and cash. Pursuant to the 2017 TPA, if the Operating Partnership: (i) sells, exchanges, transfers or otherwise disposes of certain shopping centers in a taxable transaction, or undertakes any taxable merger, combination, consolidation or similar transaction (including a transfer of all or substantially all assets), for a period of ten years commencing on October 4, 2017; or (ii) fails, prior to the expiration of such period, to maintain certain minimum levels of indebtedness that would be allocable to each protected partner for tax purposes or, under certain circumstances, fails to offer such protected partners the opportunity to guarantee certain types of the Operating Partnership’s indebtedness, then the Operating Partnership will indemnify each affected protected partner, including Mr. Edison, against certain resulting tax liabilities. Our tax indemnification obligations include a tax gross-up. As of December 31, 2021, 30 of our 268 wholly-owned shopping centers, four outparcels, and the land under which one of our properties is located, comprising approximately 11.9% of our ABR, are subject to the protection described in clause (i) above, and the potential “make-whole amount” on the estimated aggregate amount of built-in gain subject to such protection is approximately $146.8 million.

We and the Operating Partnership entered into an additional tax protection agreement (the “2021 TPA”) on July 19, 2021 with Mr. Edison; Devin I. Murphy, our President; and Robert F. Myers, our Chief Operating Officer and Executive Vice President, which will become effective upon the expiration of the 2017 TPA. The 2021 TPA generally has the following terms: (i) the 2021 TPA will severally provide to Mr. Edison, Mr. Murphy and Mr. Myers the same protection provided under the 2017 TPA until 2031, so long as (a) Mr. Edison, Mr. Murphy or Mr. Myers (or their permitted transferees), as applicable, individually owns at least 65% of the OP units owned by him as of the date of the execution of the 2021 TPA and (b) in the case of Mr. Murphy or Mr. Myers, Mr. Edison individually owns at least 65% of the OP units owned by him as of the date of the execution of the 2021 TPA; and (ii) the 2021 TPA will provide that following the expiration of the four-year tax protection period under the 2021 TPA, for so long as Mr. Edison holds at least $5.0 million in value of OP units, (a) Mr. Edison will have the opportunity to guarantee debt of the Operating Partnership or enter into a “deficit restoration” obligation, and (b) the Operating Partnership will provide reasonable notice to Mr. Edison before effecting a significant transaction reasonably likely to result in the recognition of more than one-third of the built-in gain allocated to Mr. Edison that is protected under the 2017 TPA as of the date that the 2021 TPA is executed, and will consider in good faith any proposal made by Mr. Edison relating to structuring such transaction in a manner to avoid or mitigate adverse tax consequences to him.

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Therefore, although it may be in our stockholders’ best interest for us to cause the Operating Partnership to sell, exchange, transfer or otherwise dispose of one or more of these shopping centers, it may be economically prohibitive for us to do so until the expiration of the applicable protection period because of these indemnity obligations. Moreover, these obligations may require us to cause the Operating Partnership to maintain more or different indebtedness than we would otherwise require for our business. As a result, the tax protection agreements could, during their term, restrict our ability to take actions or make decisions that otherwise would be in our best interests.

Our stockholders have limited control over changes in our policies and operations, which increases the uncertainty and risks our stockholders face.

Our Board determines our major policies, including our policies regarding financing, growth, debt capitalization, REIT qualification and distributions. Our Board may amend or revise these and other policies without the vote of our stockholders. Under the MGCL and our charter, our stockholders have a right to vote only on limited matters. Our Board’s broad discretion in setting policies and our stockholders’ inability to exert control over those policies increases the uncertainty and risks our stockholders face.

Our charter, bylaws and Maryland law contain terms that may discourage a third party from acquiring us in a manner that could result in a premium price to our stockholders.

Our charter, bylaws and Maryland law contain provisions that may delay, defer, or prevent a transaction or a change of control that might involve a premium price for our common stock or that our stockholders otherwise believe to be in their best interest. Our charter authorizes our Board to, without stockholder approval, amend our charter to increase or decrease the aggregate number of authorized shares of stock, to authorize us to issue additional shares of our common stock or preferred stock and to classify or reclassify unissued shares of our common stock or preferred stock and thereafter to authorize us to issue such classified or reclassified shares of stock. We believe these charter provisions will provide us with increased flexibility in structuring possible future financings and acquisitions and in meeting other needs that might arise. The additional classes or series, as well as the additional authorized shares of our common stock, will be available for issuance without further action by our stockholders, unless such action is required by applicable law or the rules of any stock exchange or automated quotation system on which our securities may be listed or traded, and our Board could authorize the issuance of preferred stock with priority as to distributions and amounts payable upon liquidation over the rights of the holders of our common stock.

Our charter, with certain exceptions, authorizes our Board to take such actions as are necessary and desirable to preserve our qualification as a REIT. To help us comply with the REIT ownership requirements under the IRC, among other purposes, our charter prohibits any person from directly or constructively owning more than 9.8% in value of our aggregate outstanding stock or more than 9.8% in value or number of shares, whichever is more restrictive, of our aggregate outstanding common stock, unless exempted by our Board.

In addition, the MGCL permits our Board to implement certain takeover defenses without stockholder approval.

These and other provisions of our charter, bylaws and Maryland law could have the effect of delaying, deferring, or preventing a change in control, including an extraordinary transaction (such as a merger, tender offer, or sale of all or substantially all of our assets) that might provide a premium price to holders of our common stock.

Our rights and the rights of our stockholders to recover claims against our officers and directors are limited, which could reduce our stockholders’ and our recovery against them if they cause us to incur losses.

Maryland law provides that a director has no liability in that capacity if he or she performs his or her duties in good faith, in a manner he or she reasonably believes to be in the corporation’s best interests and with the care that an ordinarily prudent person in a like position would use under similar circumstances. Our charter, in the case of our directors and officers, requires us to indemnify our directors and officers to the maximum extent permitted by Maryland law. Additionally, our charter limits the liability of our directors and officers for monetary damages to the maximum extent permitted under Maryland law. As a result, we and our stockholders may have more limited rights against our directors, officers, associates, and agents than might otherwise exist under common law, which could reduce our stockholders’ and our recovery against them. In addition, we may be obligated to fund the defense costs incurred by our directors, officers, associates, and agents in some cases, which would decrease the cash otherwise available for distribution to stockholders.

Risks Related to Our REIT Status and Other Tax Risks

Failure to qualify as a REIT would cause us to be taxed as a regular C corporation, which would substantially reduce funds available for distributions to stockholders.

We elected to be taxed as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes commencing with our taxable year ended December 31, 2010. We believe that our organization and method of operation has enabled and will continue to enable us to meet the requirements for qualification and taxation as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. However, we cannot assure you that we will qualify as such. This is because qualification as a REIT involves the application of highly technical and complex provisions of the IRC as to which there are only limited judicial and administrative interpretations and involves the determination of facts and circumstances not entirely within our control. Future legislation, new regulations, administrative interpretations, or court decisions may significantly change the tax laws or the application of the tax laws with respect to qualification as a REIT for federal income tax purposes or the federal income tax consequences of such qualification.

If we fail to qualify as a REIT in any taxable year, and are unable to obtain relief under certain statutory provisions, we will face serious tax consequences that will substantially reduce the funds available for distributions to our stockholders because:

•we would not be allowed a deduction for dividends paid to stockholders in computing our taxable income and would be subject to federal and state income tax at regular corporate rates; and

•we could not elect to be taxed as a REIT for four taxable years following the year during which we were disqualified.

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As a result of all these factors, our failure to qualify as a REIT could impair our ability to expand our business and raise capital, and it could adversely affect the value of our common stock. If we fail to qualify as a REIT, we would no longer be required to make distributions to our stockholders.

Even if we qualify as a REIT, we may face other tax liabilities that reduce our cash flows.

Even if we qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we may be subject to certain U.S. federal, state, and local taxes on our income and assets, including taxes on any undistributed income, tax on income from some activities conducted as a result of a foreclosure, and state or local income, property, and transfer taxes. Any of these taxes would decrease cash available for distributions to stockholders.

If the Operating Partnership fails to qualify as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we would fail to qualify as a REIT and would suffer adverse consequences.

We believe that the Operating Partnership is organized and will be operated in a manner so as to be treated as a partnership, and not an association or publicly traded partnership taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes. As a partnership, the Operating Partnership will not be subject to U.S. federal income tax on its income. Instead, each of its partners, including us, will be allocated that partner’s share of the Operating Partnership’s income. No assurance can be provided, however, that the Internal Revenue Service (the “IRS”) will not challenge the Operating Partnership’s status as a partnership for U.S. federal income tax purposes, or that a court would not sustain such a challenge. If the IRS were successful in treating the Operating Partnership as an association or publicly traded partnership taxable as a corporation for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we would fail to meet the gross income tests and certain of the asset tests applicable to REITs and, accordingly, would cease to qualify as a REIT. Also, the failure of the Operating Partnership to qualify as a partnership would cause it to become subject to U.S. federal corporate income tax, which would reduce significantly the amount of its cash available for debt service and for distribution to its partners, including us.

The Operating Partnership has a carryover tax basis on certain of its assets as a result of our acquisition of PELP, and our merger with Phillips Edison Grocery Center REIT II, Inc. (“REIT II”), and the amount that we have to distribute to stockholders therefore may be higher.

As a result of each of the acquisition of PELP and our merger with REIT II, certain of the Operating Partnership’s shopping centers have carryover tax bases that are lower than the fair market values of these shopping centers at the time of the acquisition. As a result of this lower aggregate tax basis, the Operating Partnership will recognize higher taxable gain upon the sale of these assets, and the Operating Partnership will be entitled to lower depreciation deductions on these assets than if it had purchased these shopping centers in taxable transactions at the time of the acquisition. Such lower depreciation deductions and increased gains on sales allocated to us generally will increase the amount of our required distribution under the REIT rules, and will decrease the portion of any distribution that otherwise would have been treated as a “return of capital” distribution.

Our property taxes could increase due to property tax rate changes or reassessment, which could impact our cash flow.

Even if we qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we are required to pay state and local property taxes on our shopping centers. The property taxes on our shopping centers may increase as property tax rates change or as our shopping centers are assessed or reassessed by taxing authorities. Therefore, the amount of property taxes we pay in the future may increase substantially from what we have paid in the past and such increases may not be covered by Neighbors pursuant to our lease agreements. If the property taxes we pay increase, our financial condition, results of operations, cash flow, per share trading price of our common stock, and ability to satisfy our principal and interest obligations and to make distributions to our stockholders could be adversely affected.

We use taxable REIT subsidiaries, which may cause us to fail to qualify as a REIT.

To qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we hold, and plan to continue to hold, substantially all of our non-qualifying REIT assets and conduct certain of our non-qualifying REIT income activities in or through one or more taxable REIT subsidiary (“TRS”) entities. A TRS is a corporation other than a REIT in which a REIT directly or indirectly holds stock, and that has made a joint election with such REIT to be treated as a TRS. A TRS also includes any corporation other than a REIT with respect to which a TRS owns securities possessing more than 35% of the total voting power or value of the outstanding securities of such corporation. Other than some activities relating to lodging and health care facilities, a TRS may generally engage in any business, including the provision of customary or non-customary services to tenants of its parent REIT. A TRS is subject to U.S. federal income tax as a regular C-corporation at a current rate of 21%.

The net income of our TRS entities is not required to be distributed to us, and income that is not distributed to us will generally not be subject to the REIT income distribution requirement. However, our TRS entities may pay dividends. Such dividend income should qualify under the 95%, but not the 75%, gross income test. We will monitor the amount of the dividend and other income from our TRS entities and will take actions intended to keep this income, and any other non-qualifying income, within the limitations of the REIT income tests. While we expect these actions will prevent a violation of the REIT income tests, we cannot guarantee that such actions will in all cases prevent such a violation.

Our ownership of TRS entities is subject to limitations that could prevent us from growing our management business, and our transactions with our TRS entities could cause us to be subject to a 100% penalty tax on certain income or deductions if those transactions are not conducted on an arm’s-length basis.

No more than 20% of the value of a REIT’s gross assets may consist of interests in TRS entities. Compliance with this limitation could limit our ability to grow our management business. The IRC also imposes a 100% excise tax on certain transactions between a TRS and its parent REIT that are not conducted on an arm’s-length basis. We will monitor the value of investments in our TRS entities in order to ensure compliance with TRS ownership limitations and will structure our transactions with our TRS entities on terms that we believe are arm’s-length to avoid incurring the 100% excise tax described

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above. There can be no assurance, however, that we will be able to comply with the TRS ownership limitation or be able to avoid application of the 100% excise tax.

REIT distribution requirements could adversely affect our ability to execute our business plans, including because we may be required to borrow funds to make distributions to stockholders or otherwise depend on external sources of capital to fund such distributions.

We generally must distribute annually at least 90% of our REIT taxable income (which is determined without regard to the dividends paid deduction or net capital gain for this purpose) in order to continue to qualify as a REIT. To the extent that we satisfy the distribution requirement but distribute less than 100% of our taxable income, we will be subject to federal corporate income tax on our undistributed taxable income. In addition, we may elect to retain and pay income tax on our net long-term capital gain. In that case, if we so elect, a stockholder would be taxed on its proportionate share of our undistributed long-term gain and would receive a credit or refund for its proportionate share of the tax we paid. A stockholder, including a tax-exempt or foreign stockholder, would have to file a U.S. federal income tax return to claim that credit or refund. Furthermore, we will be subject to a 4% nondeductible excise tax if the actual amount that we distribute to our stockholders in a calendar year is less than a minimum amount specified under federal tax laws.

We intend to make distributions to our stockholders to comply with the REIT requirements of the IRC and to avoid corporate income tax and the 4% excise tax. We may be required to make distributions to our stockholders at times when it would be more advantageous to reinvest cash in the business or when we do not have funds readily available for distribution. Thus, compliance with the REIT requirements may hinder our ability to operate solely on the basis of maximizing profits.

If we do not have other funds available, we could be required to borrow funds on unfavorable terms, sell investments at disadvantageous prices, distribute amounts that would otherwise be invested in future acquisitions or capital expenditures or used for the repayment of debt, pay dividends in the form of "taxable stock dividends,” or find another alternative source of funds to make distributions sufficient to enable us to distribute enough of our taxable income to satisfy the REIT distribution requirement and to avoid corporate income tax and the 4% excise tax in a particular year. These alternatives could increase our costs or reduce our equity.

Complying with REIT requirements may cause us to forego otherwise attractive opportunities or liquidate otherwise attractive investments.

To continue to qualify as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes, we must continually satisfy tests concerning, among other things, the sources of our income, the nature and diversification of our assets, the amounts we distribute to stockholders, and the ownership of our stock. As discussed above, we may be required to make distributions to shareholders at disadvantageous times or when we do not have funds readily available for distribution. Additionally, we may be unable to pursue investments that would be otherwise attractive to us in order to satisfy the requirements for qualifying as a REIT.

We must also ensure that at the end of each calendar quarter, at least 75% of the value of our assets consists of cash, cash items, U.S. government securities, and qualified real estate assets, including certain mortgage loans and mortgage-backed securities. The remainder of our investment in securities (other than U.S. government securities and qualified real estate assets) generally cannot include more than 10% of the outstanding voting securities of any one issuer or more than 10% of the total value of the outstanding securities of any one issuer. In addition, in general, no more than 5% of the value of our assets can consist of the securities of any one issuer (other than U.S. government securities and qualified real estate assets) and no more than 20% of the value of our gross assets may be represented by securities of one or more TRS entities. Finally, no more than 25% of our assets may consist of debt investments that are issued by “publicly offered REITs” and would not otherwise be treated as qualifying real estate assets. If we fail to comply with these requirements at the end of any calendar quarter, we must correct such failure within 30 days after the end of the calendar quarter to avoid losing our REIT status and being subject to adverse tax consequences, unless certain relief provisions apply. As a result, compliance with the REIT requirements may hinder our ability to operate solely on the basis of profit maximization and may require us to liquidate investments from our portfolio, or refrain from making otherwise attractive investments. These actions could have the effect of reducing our income and amounts available for distribution to stockholders.

The prohibited transactions tax may limit our ability to engage in transactions, including disposition of assets, which would be treated as sales for U.S. federal income tax purposes.

A REIT’s net income from prohibited transactions is subject to a 100% tax. In general, prohibited transactions are sales or other dispositions of dealer property, other than foreclosure property. We may be subject to the prohibited transaction tax upon a disposition of real property. Although a safe-harbor exception to prohibited transaction treatment is available, we cannot assure you that we can comply with such safe harbor or that we will avoid owning property that may be characterized as held primarily for sale to customers in the ordinary course of our trade or business. Consequently, we may choose not to engage in certain sales of real property or may conduct such sales through a TRS.

It may be possible to reduce the impact of the prohibited transaction tax by conducting certain activities through a TRS. However, to the extent that we engage in such activities through a TRS, the income associated with such activities will be subject to a corporate income tax. In addition, the IRS may attempt to ignore or otherwise recast such activities in order to impose a prohibited transaction tax on us, and there can be no assurance that such recast will not be successful.

We may recognize substantial amounts of REIT taxable income, which we would be required to distribute to our stockholders, in a year in which we are not profitable under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”) or other economic measures.

We may recognize substantial amounts of REIT taxable income in years in which we are not profitable under GAAP or other economic measures as a result of the differences between GAAP and tax accounting methods. For instance, certain of our assets will be marked-to-market for GAAP purposes but not for tax purposes, which could result in losses for GAAP purposes that are not recognized in computing our REIT taxable income. Additionally, we may deduct our capital losses only to the extent of our capital gains in computing our REIT taxable income for a given taxable year. Consequently, we could recognize

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substantial amounts of REIT taxable income and would be required to distribute such income to shareholders in a year in which we are not profitable under GAAP or other economic measures.

Our qualification as a REIT could be jeopardized as a result of an interest in joint ventures or investment funds.

We may hold certain limited partner or non-managing member interests in partnerships or limited liability companies that are joint ventures or investment funds. If a partnership or limited liability company in which we own an interest takes or expects to take actions that could jeopardize our qualification as a REIT or require us to pay tax, we may be forced to dispose of our interest in such entity. In addition, it is possible that a partnership or limited liability company could take an action which could cause us to fail a REIT gross income or asset test, and that we would not become aware of such action in time to dispose of our interest in the partnership or limited liability company or take other corrective action on a timely basis. In that case, we could fail to continue to qualify as a REIT unless we are able to qualify for a statutory REIT “savings” provision, which may require us to pay a significant penalty tax to maintain our REIT qualification.

Distributions paid by REITs do not qualify for the reduced tax rates that apply to other corporate distributions.

The maximum tax rate for “qualified dividends” paid by corporations to non-corporate stockholders generally is 20%. Distributions paid by REITs to non-corporate stockholders generally are taxed at rates lower than ordinary income rates, but those rates are higher than the 20% tax rate on qualified dividend income paid by corporations. Although this does not adversely affect the taxation of REITs or dividends payable by REITs, to the extent that the preferential rates continue to apply to regular corporate qualified dividends, the more favorable rates for corporate dividends may cause non-corporate investors to perceive that an investment in a REIT is less attractive than an investment in a non-REIT entity that pays dividends, thereby reducing the demand and market price of shares of our common stock.

Legislative or regulatory tax changes could adversely affect us or our stockholders.

At any time, the U.S. federal income tax laws or regulations governing REITs or the administrative interpretations of those laws or regulations may be amended. We cannot predict when or if any new U.S. federal income tax law, regulation or administrative interpretation, or any amendment to any existing U.S. federal income tax law, regulation or administrative interpretation, will be adopted, promulgated or become effective and any such law, regulation or interpretation may take effect retroactively. Any such change could result in an increase in our, or our stockholders’, tax liability or require changes in the manner in which we operate in order to minimize increases in our tax liability. A shortfall in tax revenues for states and municipalities in which we operate may lead to an increase in the frequency and size of such changes. If such changes occur, we may be required to pay additional taxes on our assets or income or be subject to additional restrictions. These increased tax costs could, among other things, adversely affect our financial condition, results of operations, and the amount of cash available for the payment of dividends. We and our stockholders could be adversely affected by any such change in, or any new, U.S. federal income tax law, regulation, or administrative interpretation.

In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has left many state and local governments with reduced tax revenue, which may lead such governments to increase taxes or otherwise make significant changes to their state and local tax laws. If such changes occur, we may be required to pay additional taxes on our assets or income.

If our assets are deemed to be plan assets, we may be exposed to liabilities under Title I of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) and the IRC.

In some circumstances where an ERISA plan holds an interest in an entity, the assets of the entity are deemed to be ERISA plan assets unless an exception applies. This is known as the “look-through rule.” Under those circumstances, the obligations and other responsibilities of plan sponsors, plan fiduciaries and plan administrators, and of parties in interest and disqualified persons, under Title I of ERISA or Section 4975 of the IRC, may be applicable, and there may be liability under these and other provisions of ERISA and the IRC. We believe that our assets should not be treated as plan assets because the shares of our common stock should qualify as “publicly-offered securities” that are exempt from the look-through rules under applicable Treasury Regulations. We note, however, that because certain limitations are imposed upon the transferability of shares of our common stock so that we may qualify as a REIT, and perhaps for other reasons, it is possible that this exemption may not apply. If that is the case, and if we are exposed to liability under ERISA or the IRC, our performance and results of operations could be adversely affected.

Risks Related to Business Continuity

Uninsured losses relating to real property or excessively expensive premiums for insurance coverage could adversely affect our cash flows and stockholder returns.

We maintain insurance coverage with third-party carriers who provide a portion of the coverage of potential losses, including commercial general liability, fire, flood, extended coverage and rental loss insurance on all of our shopping centers. We currently self-insure a portion of our commercial insurance deductible risk through our captive insurance company. To the extent that our captive insurance company is unable to bear that risk, we may be required to fund additional capital to our captive insurance company or we may be required to bear that loss. As a result, our operating results may be adversely affected.

There are some types of losses, generally catastrophic in nature, such as losses due to wars, acts of terrorism, earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, pollution or environmental matters, that are uninsurable or not economically insurable, or may be insured subject to limitations, such as large deductibles or sublimits. Insurance risks associated with potential acts of terrorism could sharply increase the premiums that we pay for coverage against property and casualty claims. Additionally, mortgage lenders in some cases insist that commercial property owners purchase coverage against terrorism as a condition for providing mortgage loans. Such insurance policies may not be available at reasonable costs, if at all, which could inhibit our ability to finance or refinance our shopping centers. In such instances, we may be required to provide other financial support, either through financial assurances or self-insurance, to cover potential losses. We may not have adequate, or any, coverage for such losses. Changes in the cost or availability of insurance could expose us to uninsured casualty losses. If any of our shopping centers incur a casualty loss that is not fully insured, the value of our assets will be reduced by any such uninsured

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loss, which may reduce the value of our stockholders’ investment. In addition, other than any working capital reserve or other reserves we may establish, we have no source of funding to repair or reconstruct any uninsured property. Also, to the extent we must pay unexpectedly large amounts for insurance, such payments could adversely impact our cash flows and ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

Climate change may adversely affect our business, financial condition, cash flows, and results of operations.

Climate change, including the impact of global warming, creates physical and financial risks. Physical risks from climate change include an increase in sea level and changes in weather conditions, such as an increase in storm intensity and severity of weather (e.g. floods, tornadoes, or hurricanes) and extreme temperatures. The occurrence of sea level rise or one or more natural disasters, such as floods, tornados, hurricanes, tropical storms, wildfires, and earthquakes (whether or not caused by climate change), could cause considerable damage to our shopping centers, disrupt our operations and negatively affect our financial performance. To the extent any of these events results in significant damage to or closure of one or more of our shopping centers, our operations and financial performance could be adversely affected through lost Neighbors and an inability to lease or re‐lease the space. In addition, these events could result in significant expenses to restore or remediate a property, increases in fuel or other energy costs or a fuel shortage, and increases in the costs of (or making unavailable) insurance on favorable terms if they result in significant loss of property or other insurable damage. In addition, transition risks associated with new or more stringent laws or regulations or stricter interpretations of existing laws may require material expenditures by us. For example, various federal, state, and regional laws and regulations have been implemented or are under consideration to mitigate the effects of climate change caused by greenhouse gas emissions. Among other things, “green” building codes may seek to reduce emissions through the imposition of standards for design, construction materials, water and energy usage and efficiency, and waste management. Such codes could require us to make improvements to our existing shopping centers, increase the costs of maintaining or improving our existing shopping centers or developing new shopping centers, or increase taxes and fees assessed on us or our shopping centers.

As an owner and/or operator of real estate, we could become subject to liability for environmental violations, regardless of whether we caused such violations, and our efforts to identify environmental liabilities may not be successful.

We could become subject to liability in the form of fines or damages for noncompliance with environmental laws and regulations. These laws and regulations generally govern wastewater discharges; air emissions; the operation and removal of underground and above-ground storage tanks; the use, storage, treatment, transportation and disposal of hazardous materials and wastes; the remediation of contaminated property associated with the release or disposal of hazardous materials and wastes; and other health and safety-related concerns. U.S. federal, state, and local laws and regulations relating to the protection of the environment may require us, as a current or previous owner or operator of real property, to investigate and clean up hazardous or toxic substances or petroleum product releases at a property or at impacted neighboring properties. Some of these laws and regulations may impose strict or joint and several liability on tenants, owners, or operators for the costs of investigation or remediation of contaminated properties, regardless of fault or the legality of the original disposal. Under various federal, state, and local environmental laws, ordinances, and regulations, a current or former owner or operator of real property may be liable for the cost to remove or remediate hazardous or toxic substances, wastes, or petroleum products on, under, from, or in such property. These costs could be substantial and liability under these laws may attach whether or not the owner or manager knew of, or was responsible for, the presence of such contamination. Even if more than one person may have been responsible for the contamination, each liable party may be held entirely responsible for all of the clean-up costs incurred. For example, many of our sites are currently or were formerly used for dry cleaning operations, and there have been and could be releases of chlorinated solvents as a result of these operations, which have resulted in and could give rise in the future to the requirement that we perform clean-up actions. As another example, many of our sites are currently or were formerly used for motor vehicle filling station and maintenance operations, and there have been and could be releases of petroleum products, hydraulic oil, or other substances associated with these operations, which have resulted in and could give rise in the future to the requirement that we or others investigate or remediate the releases. We may be subject to regulatory action and may also be held liable to third parties for personal injury or property damage incurred by such parties in connection with exposure to or offsite contamination caused by hazardous or toxic substances. The costs of investigation, removal or remediation of hazardous or toxic substances, and related liabilities, may be substantial and could materially and adversely affect us. The presence of hazardous or toxic substances, or the failure to remediate the related contamination, may also adversely affect our ability to sell, lease or redevelop a property or to borrow money using a property as collateral.

Although we believe that our portfolio is in substantial compliance with U.S. federal, state, and local environmental laws and regulations regarding hazardous or toxic substances, and that there is no material contamination that we would be responsible for addressing, this belief is based on limited evaluation and testing. Nearly all of our shopping centers have been subjected to Phase I or similar environmental audits. These environmental audits (which do not include subsurface testing) have not revealed, nor are we aware of, any environmental liability that we believe is reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on us. However, we cannot assure you that: (i) previous environmental studies with respect to the portfolio revealed all potential environmental liabilities; (ii) any previous owner, occupant or Neighbor of a property did not create any material environmental condition not known to us; (iii) the current environmental condition of the portfolio will not be affected by Neighbors and occupants, by the condition of nearby properties, or by other unrelated third parties; or (iv) future uses or conditions (including, without limitation, changes in applicable environmental laws and regulations or the interpretation thereof) will not result in environmental liabilities.

We and our Neighbors face risks relating to cybersecurity attacks, which could cause loss of confidential information and other disruptions to business operations, and compliance with new laws and regulations regarding cybersecurity and privacy may result in substantial costs and may decrease cash available for distributions.

Cybersecurity attacks include attempts to gain unauthorized access to our data and/or computer systems to disrupt operations, corrupt data, or steal confidential information. We may face such cybersecurity attacks through malware, computer viruses, attachments to e-mails, persons inside our organization or persons with access to systems inside our

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organization, and other significant disruptions of our information technology (IT) systems. The risk of a cybersecurity attack, including by computer hackers (individual or hacking organizations), foreign governments, and cyber terrorists, has generally increased as the number, intensity, and sophistication of attempted attacks and intrusions from around the world have increased. The techniques and sophistication used to conduct cyber attacks and breaches of IT systems, as well as the sources and targets of these attacks, change frequently and are often not recognized until such attacks are launched or have been in place for a period of time.

Our IT networks and related systems are essential to the operation of our business and our ability to perform day-to-day operations and, in some cases, may be critical to the operations of certain of our Neighbors. In addition to our own IT systems, we also depend on third parties to provide IT services relating to several key business functions, such as administration, accounting, communications, document management and storage, human resources, payroll, tax, investor relations, and certain finance functions. Our IT systems and those provided by third parties may contain personal, financial, or other information that is entrusted to us by our Neighbors and associates, as well as proprietary PECO information and other confidential information related to our business. We and such third parties employ a number of measures to prevent, detect, and mitigate these threats, including password protection, firewalls, backup servers, malware detection, intrusion sensors, threat monitoring, user training, and periodic penetration testing; however, there is no guarantee that such efforts will be successful in preventing a cybersecurity attack.

As our reliance on technology has increased, so have the risks posed to our systems, both internal and those we have outsourced. The primary risks that could directly result from the occurrence of a cyber incident include operational interruption, damage to our relationship with our Neighbors, and private data exposure. Our financial results and business operations may be negatively affected by such an incident or the resulting negative media attention. A cybersecurity attack could: (i) disrupt the proper functioning of our networks and systems and therefore our operations and/or those of certain of our Neighbors; (ii) compromise the confidential or proprietary information of our Neighbors, associates, and vendors, which others could use to compete against us or for disruptive, destructive, or otherwise harmful purposes and outcomes; (iii) result in our inability to maintain the building systems relied upon by our Neighbors for the efficient use of their leased space; (iv) require significant management attention and resources to remedy the damages that result; (v) result in misstated financial reports, violations of loan covenants and/or missed reporting deadlines; (vi) result in our inability to properly monitor our compliance with the rules and regulations regarding our qualification as a REIT; (vii) subject us to claims for breach of contract, damages, credits, penalties, or termination of leases or other agreements or relationships; (viii) cause reputational damage that adversely affects Neighbor, investor, and associate confidence in us, which could negatively affect our ability to attract and retain Neighbors, investors, and associates; (ix) result in significant remediation costs, some or all of which may not be recoverable from our insurance carriers; and (x) result in increases in the cost of obtaining insurance on favorable terms, or at all, if the attack results in significant insured losses. Such security breaches also could result in a violation of applicable federal and state privacy and other laws, and subject us to private consumer, business partner, or securities litigation and governmental investigations and proceedings, any of which could result in our exposure to material civil or criminal liability, and we may not be able to recover these expenses from our service providers, responsible parties, or insurance carriers. Similarly, our Neighbors rely extensively on IT systems to process transactions and manage their businesses and thus are also at risk from and may be adversely affected by cybersecurity attacks. An interruption in the business operations of our Neighbors or a deterioration in their reputation resulting from a cybersecurity attack, including unauthorized access to customers’ credit card data and other confidential information, could indirectly negatively affect our business and cause lost revenues. As of December 31, 2021, we have not had any material incidents involving cybersecurity attacks.

Regulatory and Legal Risks

Compliance or failure to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (the “ADA”), and fire, safety, and other regulations could result in substantial costs and may decrease cash available for stockholder distributions.

Our shopping centers are or may become subject to the ADA which generally requires that all places of public accommodation comply with federal requirements related to access and use by disabled persons. Compliance with the ADA’s requirements could require the removal of access barriers and noncompliance may result in the imposition of injunctive relief, monetary penalties, or in some cases, an award of damages. While we attempt to acquire shopping centers that are already in compliance with the ADA or place the burden of compliance on the seller or other third party, such as a Neighbor, we cannot assure stockholders that we will be able to acquire shopping centers or allocate responsibilities in this manner. In addition, we are required to operate the shopping centers in compliance with fire and safety regulations, building codes, and other land use regulations, as they may be adopted by governmental entities and become applicable to the shopping centers. We may be required to make substantial capital expenditures to comply with these requirements, and these expenditures may reduce our net income and may have a material adverse effect on our ability to meet our financial obligations and make distributions to our stockholders.

We could be subject to legal or regulatory proceedings that may adversely affect our cash flows and results of operations.

As an owner and operator of public shopping centers, from time to time, we are party to legal and regulatory proceedings that arise in the ordinary course of business. Due to the inherent uncertainties of litigation and regulatory proceedings, we cannot accurately predict the ultimate outcome of any such litigation or proceedings. We could experience an adverse effect to our cash flows, financial condition, and results of operations due to an unfavorable outcome.

Risks Related to Our Common Stock

An active trading market for our common stock may not be maintained.

Our common stock only recently began trading on Nasdaq, and we cannot assure you that an active trading market will be sustained. Whether an active public market for shares of our common stock will be maintained depends on a number of factors, including the extent of institutional investor interest in us, the general reputation of REITs and the attractiveness of their equity securities in comparison to other equity securities (including securities issued by other real estate based

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companies), our financial performance, and general stock and bond market conditions. If an active trading market for shares of our common stock does not develop, you may have difficulty selling shares of our common stock, which could adversely affect the price that you receive for such shares.

The market price and trading volume of shares of our common stock may be volatile.

The U.S. stock markets, including Nasdaq, on which our common stock recently began trading, have experienced significant price and volume fluctuations. As a result, the market price of shares of our common stock is likely to be similarly volatile, and investors in shares of our common stock may experience a decrease in the value of their shares, including decreases unrelated to our operating performance or prospects. We cannot assure you that the market price of shares of our common stock will not fluctuate or decline significantly in the future.

In addition to the risks listed in this “Risk Factors” section, a number of factors could negatively affect the share price of our common stock or result in fluctuations in the price or trading volume of shares of our common stock, including:

•the annual yield from distributions on shares of our common stock as compared to yields on other financial instruments;

•equity issuances by us, or future sales of substantial amounts of shares of our common stock by our existing or future stockholders, or the perception that such issuances or future sales may occur;

•the recent automatic conversion of all shares of our Class B common stock into shares of our listed common stock;

•increases in market interest rates or a decrease in our distributions to stockholders that lead purchasers of shares of our common stock to demand a higher yield;

•changes in market valuations of similar companies;

•fluctuations in stock market prices and volumes;

•additions or departures of key management personnel;

•our operating performance and the performance of other similar companies;

•actual or anticipated differences in our quarterly operating results;

•changes in expectations of future financial performance or changes in estimates of securities analysts;

•publication of research reports about us or our industry by securities analysts;

•failure to qualify as a REIT;

•adverse market reaction to any indebtedness we incur in the future;

•strategic decisions by us or our competitors, such as acquisitions, divestments, spin offs, joint ventures, strategic investments, or changes in business strategy;

•the passage of legislation or other regulatory developments that adversely affect us or our industry;

•speculation in the press or investment community;

•changes in our earnings;

•failure to satisfy the listing requirements of Nasdaq;

•failure to comply with the requirements of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act;

•actions by institutional stockholders;

•changes in accounting principles; and

•general market conditions, including factors unrelated to our performance.

In the past, securities class action litigation has often been instituted against companies following periods of volatility in the price of their common stock. This type of litigation could result in substantial costs and divert our management’s attention and resources, which could have a material adverse effect on our cash flows, our ability to execute our business strategy and our ability to make distributions to our stockholders.

The number of shares of our common stock available for future issuance or sale could adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

We cannot predict whether future issuances or sales of shares of our common stock or the availability of shares of our common stock for resale in the open market will decrease the market price of our common stock. The issuance of a substantial number of shares of our common stock in the public market, or upon exchange of common units of limited partnership interest in our OP units, or the perception that such issuances might occur, could adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

The exchange of OP units for common stock, including OP units granted to certain directors, executive officers and other employees under our equity incentive plan, or the issuance of our common stock or OP units in connection with future property, portfolio or business acquisitions could have an adverse effect on the market price of our common stock. In addition, the existence of OP units and shares of our common stock reserved for issuance under our equity incentive plan may adversely affect the terms upon which we may be able to obtain additional capital through the sale of equity securities. Future issuances of shares of our common stock may also be dilutive to existing stockholders.

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Future offerings of debt securities, which would be senior to our common stock upon liquidation, and/or preferred equity securities, which may be senior to our common stock for purposes of dividend distributions or upon liquidation, may adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

In October 2021, we issued $350 million aggregate principal amount of 2.625% senior notes, and in the future, we may attempt to increase our capital resources by offering additional debt or equity securities (or causing our operating partnership to issue debt or equity securities), including medium term notes, senior or subordinated notes, and additional classes of preferred or common stock. Holders of debt securities or shares of preferred stock, as well as lenders with respect to other borrowings, will generally be entitled to receive interest payments or distributions, both current and in connection with any liquidation or sale, prior to the holders of our common stock. Additionally, any convertible or exchangeable securities that we issue in the future may have rights, preferences and privileges more favorable than those of our common stock and may result in dilution to owners of our common stock. We are not required to offer any such additional debt or equity securities to existing common stockholders on a preemptive basis. Therefore, offerings of common stock or other equity securities may dilute the holdings of our existing stockholders. Future offerings of debt or equity securities, or the perception that such offerings may occur, may reduce the market price of our common stock and/or the distributions that we pay with respect to our common stock. Because we may generally issue any such debt or equity securities in the future without obtaining the consent of our stockholders, you will bear the risk of our future offerings reducing the market price of our common stock and diluting your proportionate ownership.

If we pay distributions from sources other than our cash flows from operations, we may not be able to sustain our distribution rate, we may have fewer funds available for investment in shopping centers and other assets, and our stockholders’ overall returns may be reduced.

Our organizational documents permit us to pay distributions from any source without limit (other than those limits set forth under Maryland law). To the extent we fund distributions from borrowings, we will have fewer funds available for investment in real estate shopping centers and other real estate-related assets, and our stockholders’ overall returns may be reduced. At times, we may need to borrow funds to pay distributions, which could increase the costs to operate our business. Furthermore, if we cannot cover our distributions with cash flows from operations, we may be unable to sustain our distribution rate.

Our distributions to stockholders may change, which could adversely affect the market price of shares of our common stock.

All distributions will be at the sole discretion of our Board and will depend on our actual and projected financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, liquidity, maintenance of our REIT qualification, and such other matters as our Board may deem relevant from time to time. We intend to evaluate distributions throughout 2022, and it is possible that stockholders may not receive distributions equivalent to those previously paid by us for various reasons, including: (i) we may not have enough cash to pay such distributions due to changes in our cash requirements, indebtedness, capital spending plans, operating cash flows, or financial position; (ii) decisions on whether, when, and in what amounts to make any future distributions will remain at all times entirely at the discretion of the Board, which reserves the right to change our distribution practices at any time and for any reason; (iii) our Board may elect to retain cash for investment purposes, working capital reserves, or other purposes, or to maintain or improve our credit ratings; and (iv) the amount of distributions that our subsidiaries may distribute to us may be subject to restrictions imposed by state law, state regulators, and/or the terms of any current or future indebtedness that these subsidiaries may incur.

Stockholders have no contractual or other legal right to distributions that have not been authorized by the Board and declared by the Company. We may not be able to make distributions in the future or may need to fund such distributions from external sources, as to which no assurances can be given. In addition, as noted above, we may choose to retain operating cash flow, and those retained funds, although increasing the value of our underlying assets, may not correspondingly increase the market price of shares of our common stock. Our failure to meet the market's expectations with regard to future cash distributions likely would adversely affect the market price of shares of our common stock.

Increases in market interest rates may result in a decrease in the value of shares of our common stock.

One of the factors that may influence the price of shares of our common stock will be the dividend distribution rate on our common stock (as a percentage of the price of shares of our common stock) relative to market interest rates. If market interest rates rise, prospective purchasers of shares of our common stock may expect a higher distribution rate. Higher interest rates would not, however, result in more funds being available for distribution and, in fact, would likely increase our borrowing costs and might decrease our funds available for distribution. We therefore may not be able, or we may not choose, to provide a higher distribution rate. As a result, prospective purchasers may decide to purchase other securities rather than shares of our common stock, which would reduce the demand for, and result in a decline in the market price of, shares of our common stock.

If we fail to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls, we may not be able to accurately and timely report our financial results.

Effective internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls are necessary for us to provide reliable financial reports, effectively prevent fraud, and to operate successfully as a public company. If we cannot provide reliable financial reports or prevent fraud, our reputation and operating results would be harmed. We are currently required to perform system and process evaluation and testing of our internal control over financial reporting to allow management to report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, and as of December 31, 2022, we expect that we will be required to have our independent registered public accounting firm attest to the same, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. To date, the audit of our consolidated financial statements by our independent registered public accounting firm has included a consideration of internal control over financial reporting as a basis of designing their audit procedures, but not for the purpose of expressing an opinion (as will be required pursuant to Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002) on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. If a material weakness or significant deficiency was to be identified in our internal control over financial reporting, we may also identify deficiencies in some of our disclosure

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controls and procedures that we believe require remediation. If we or our independent registered public accounting firm discover weaknesses, we will make efforts to improve our internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls. However, there is no assurance that we will be successful. Any failure to maintain effective controls or timely effect any necessary improvement of our internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls could harm operating results or cause us to fail to meet our reporting obligations, which could affect the listing of our common stock on Nasdaq. Ineffective internal control over financial reporting and disclosure controls could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which would likely have a negative effect on the per share trading price of our common stock.

Prior to our underwritten IPO, we had no operating history as a publicly traded company and may not be able to successfully operate as a publicly traded company.

Prior to our underwritten IPO, we had no operating history as a publicly traded company. We cannot assure you that the past experience of our senior management team will be sufficient to successfully operate our Company as a publicly traded company. Upon completion of our underwritten IPO, we were required to comply with the Nasdaq listing standards, and this transition could place a significant strain on our management systems, infrastructure and other resources. Failure to operate successfully as a publicly traded company would have an adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations, cash flow, and per share trading price of our common stock.

ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

Not applicable.

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ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

REAL ESTATE INVESTMENTS—The following table details information for our wholly-owned properties and those owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures as of December 31, 2021, which is the basis for determining the prorated information included in the subsequent tables (dollars and square feet in thousands):

Ownership Percentage Number of Properties ABR GLA

The following table presents information regarding the geographic location of our properties, including wholly-owned and the prorated portion of those owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures, by ABR as of December 31, 2021. For additional portfolio information, refer to “Schedule III - Real Estate Assets and Accumulated Depreciation” (dollars and square feet in thousands):

(1)We calculate ABR as monthly contractual base rent as of December 31, 2021, multiplied by twelve months.

(2)GLA is defined as the total occupied and unoccupied square footage of a building that is available for Neighbors tolease.

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LEASE EXPIRATIONS—The following chart shows the aggregate scheduled lease expirations, excluding our Neighbors who are occupying space on a temporary basis, after December 31, 2021 for each of the next ten years and thereafter for our wholly-owned properties and the prorated portion of those owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures:

Our ability to create rental rate growth generally depends on our leverage during new and renewal lease negotiations with prospective and existing Neighbors, which typically occurs when occupancy at our centers is high or during periods of economic growth and recovery. Conversely, we may experience rental rate decline when occupancy at our centers is low or during periods of economic recession, as the leverage during new and renewal lease negotiations may shift to prospective and existing Neighbors.

For our wholly-owned properties and those owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures, during the 2022 fiscal year, we have a total of 639 leases expiring, representing 2.3 million square feet of GLA. For our wholly-owned properties, during the 2022 fiscal year, we have 592 leases expiring, representing 2.3 million square feet of GLA. For our wholly-owned properties, the expiring leases have an ABR of $13.90 per square foot. While we cannot predict what rental rates we will achieve in 2022 as we renew or replace these expiring leases, the comparable rent spread of new leases signed during 2021 was 15.7%, and the comparable rent spread for lease renewals executed in 2021 was 8.1%. Further, during the fiscal year 2021, our occupancy improved 1.6% to 96.3%, indicating continued demand for leasing spaces at our centers.

See “Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Overview - Leasing Activity” of this filing on Form 10-K for further discussion of leasing activity.

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PORTFOLIO TENANCY—We define national Neighbors as those Neighbors that operate in at least three states. Regional Neighbors are defined as those Neighbors that have at least three locations in fewer than three states. The following charts present the composition of our portfolio, including our wholly-owned properties and the prorated portion of those owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures, by Neighbor type as of December 31, 2021:

The following charts present the composition of our portfolio by neighbor industry as of December 31, 2021:

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NECESSITY-BASED GOODS AND SERVICES—We define “Necessity-based goods and services” as goods and services that are indispensable, necessary, or common for day-to-day living, or that tend to be inelastic (i.e., those for which the demand does not change based on a consumer’s income level). We estimate that approximately 72% of our ABR, including the pro rata portion attributable to properties owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures, is generated from Neighbors providing necessity-based goods and services. Additionally, within Necessity-based goods and services, we estimate that approximately 49% of our ABR is generated from retail and service businesses generally deemed essential under most state and local mandates issued in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, including those that may have temporarily closed at various points during the pandemic due to decreases in foot traffic and customer patronage as a result of “stay-at-home” mandates and social distancing guidelines implemented in response to the pandemic.

TOP TWENTY NEIGHBORS—The following table presents our top twenty Neighbors by ABR, including our wholly-owned properties and the prorated portion of those owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures, as of December 31, 2021 (dollars and square feet in thousands):

(1)Neighbors are grouped by parent company and may represent multiple subsidiaries and banners.

(2)Number of locations excludes auxiliary leases with grocery anchors such as fuel stations, pharmacies, and liquor stores. Additionally, in the event that a parent company has multiple subsidiaries or banners in a shopping center, those subsidiaries are included as one location.

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

From time to time, we are party to legal proceedings, which arise in the ordinary course of our business. We are not currently involved in any legal proceedings for which we are not covered by our liability insurance or the outcome is reasonably likely to have a material impact on our results of operations or financial condition, nor are we aware of any such legal proceedings contemplated by governmental authorities.

ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not applicable.

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w PART II

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS, AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

MARKET INFORMATION—Our common stock is traded on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (“Nasdaq”) under the ticker symbol “PECO.” As of February 1, 2022, we had approximately 113.4 million shares of common stock outstanding, held by a total of 17,463 stockholders of record. This figure does not represent the actual number of beneficial owners of the Company’s common shares because common shares are frequently held in “street name” by securities dealers and others for the beneficial owners who may vote the shares. As of December 31, 2021, there was no established public trading market for our Class B common stock, which automatically converted into our publicly traded common stock on January 18, 2022.

Underwritten Initial Public Offering—On July 19, 2021, we closed our underwritten initial public offering (“underwritten IPO”), through which we issued 19.6 million shares, including the underwriters’ overallotment election, of a new class of common stock, $0.01 par value per share, at an initial price to the public of $28.00 per share. See “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Overview” for more details.

Prior to our underwritten IPO, the independent directors of our board of directors (the “Board”) engaged an independent valuation expert that has expertise in appraising commercial real estate assets, to provide a calculation of the range of an estimated value per share (“EVPS”) of our common stock. On April 29, 2021, the independent directors of our Board declared the EVPS of our common stock as $31.65 as of March 31, 2021. On May 6, 2020, we previously established an EVPS of $26.25 as of March 31, 2020. See “Part II. Item 5. Other Information - Estimated Value per Share” of the Form 10-Q filed with the SEC on May 4, 2021 for further details on EVPS, including valuation methodologies, role of the independent directors, and limitations of EVPS.

DISTRIBUTIONS—We elected to be taxed as a real estate investment trust (“REIT”) for federal income tax purposes commencing with our taxable year ended December 31, 2010. As a REIT, we have made, and intend to continue to make, distributions each taxable year equal to at least 90% of our taxable income (excluding capital gains and computed without regard to the dividends paid deduction).

The following table details distributions to our common stockholders and OP unit holders on a cash basis during the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020:

(1)Due to the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, our Board suspended stockholder distributions effective after the payment of the March 2020 distribution on April 1, 2020 and continuing through November 2020. Our Board reinstated monthly stockholder distributions beginning December 2020.

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The January 2022 distributions of $0.09 per share were paid on February 1, 2022. On February 9, 2022, our Board authorized 2022 distributions for February, March, and April of $0.09 per share to the stockholders of record at the close of business on February 15, 2022, March 15, 2022, and April 15, 2022, respectively. Holders of ownership units of Phillips Edison Grocery Center Operating Partnership I, L.P. (the "Operating Partnership") ("OP units") will receive distributions at the same rate as common stockholders. The timing and amount of distributions is determined by our Board and is influenced in part by our intention to comply with REIT requirements of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “IRC”).

DIVIDEND REINVESTMENT PLAN (“DRIP”) AND THE SHARE REPURCHASE PLAN (“SRP”)—On August 4, 2021, as a result of our underwritten IPO, our Board approved the termination of the DRIP and the SRP.

UNREGISTERED SALE OF SECURITIES—During the year ended December 31, 2021, we issued an aggregate of approximately 28,000 shares of common stock in redemption of approximately 28,000 OP units. These shares of common stock were issued in reliance on an exemption from registration under Section 4(a)(2) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended. We relied on the exemption under Section 4(a)(2) based upon factual representations received from the limited partner who received the shares of common stock.

SHARE REPURCHASES—During the three months ended December 31, 2021, we did not repurchase any shares of common stock as a result of the termination of the SRP, as described above.

PERFORMANCE GRAPH—The following graph is a comparison of the cumulative total return of shares of our common stock, the Standard and Poor’s 500 Composite Index (“S&P 500”) and the FTSE Nareit All Equity REITs index (“FNER”). The graph assumes that $100 was invested on July 15, 2021 and assumes the reinvestment of any dividends. The shareholder return shown on the graph below is not indicative of future performance. The information in this paragraph and the following performance graph are deemed “furnished”, not “filed”, with the SEC and is not to be incorporated by reference into any of our filings, whether made before or after the date hereof and irrespective of any general incorporation language contained in such filing, except as shall be expressly set forth by specific reference in such filing.

ITEM 6.

Reserved.

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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our accompanying consolidated financial statements and notes thereto. See also “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” preceding Part I.

KEY PERFORMANCE INDICATORS AND DEFINED TERMS

We use certain key performance indicators (“KPIs”), which include both financial and nonfinancial metrics, to measure the performance of our operations. We believe these KPIs, as well as the core concepts and terms defined below, allow our Board, management, and investors to analyze trends around our business strategy, financial condition, and results of operations in a manner that is focused on items unique to the retail real estate industry.

We do not consider our non-GAAP measures to be alternatives to measures required in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”). Certain non-GAAP measures should not be viewed as an alternative measure of our financial performance as they may not reflect the operations of our entire portfolio, and they may not reflect the impact of general and administrative expenses, depreciation and amortization, interest expense, other income (expense), or the level of capital expenditures and leasing costs necessary to maintain the operating performance of our shopping centers that could materially impact our results from operations. Additionally, certain non-GAAP measures should not be considered as an indication of our liquidity, nor as an indication of funds available to cover our cash needs, including our ability to fund distributions, and may not be a useful measure of the impact of long-term operating performance on value if we do not continue to operate our business in the manner currently contemplated. Accordingly, non-GAAP measures should be reviewed in connection with other GAAP measurements, and should not be viewed as more prominent measures of performance than net income (loss) or cash flows from operations prepared in accordance with GAAP. Other REITs may use different methodologies for calculating similar non-GAAP measures, and accordingly, our non-GAAP measures may not be comparable to other REITs.

Our KPIs and terminology can be grouped into three key areas:

PORTFOLIO—Portfolio metrics help management to gauge the health of our centers overall and individually.

•Anchor space—We define an anchor space as a space greater than or equal to 10,000 square feet of gross leasable area (“GLA”).

•Annualized Base Rent (“ABR”)—We use ABR to refer to the monthly contractual base rent at the end of the period multiplied by twelve months.

•ABR per Square Foot (“PSF”)—This metric is calculated by dividing ABR by leased GLA. Increases in ABR PSF can be an indication of our ability to create rental rate growth in our centers, as well as an indication of demand for our spaces, which generally provides us with greater leverage during lease negotiations.

•GLA—We use GLA to refer to the total occupied and unoccupied square footage of a building that is available for tenants (whom we refer to as a “Neighbor” or our “Neighbors”) or other retailers to lease.

•Inline space—We define an inline space as a space containing less than 10,000 square feet of GLA.

•Leased Occupancy—This metric is calculated as the percentage of total GLA for which a lease has been signed regardless of whether the lease has commenced or the Neighbor has taken possession. High occupancy is an indicator of demand for our spaces, which generally provides us with greater leverage during lease negotiations.

•Underwritten incremental unlevered yield—This reflects the yield we target to generate from a project upon expected stabilization and is calculated as the estimated incremental net operating income (“NOI”) for a project at stabilization divided by its estimated net project investment. The estimated incremental NOI is the difference between the estimated annualized NOI we target to generate by project upon stabilization and the estimated annualized NOI without the planned improvements. Underwritten incremental unlevered yield does not include peripheral impacts, such as lease rollover risk or the impact on the long term value of the property upon sale or disposition. Actual incremental unlevered yields may vary from our underwritten incremental unlevered yield range based on the actual total cost to complete a project and its actual incremental NOI at stabilization.

LEASING—Leasing is a key driver of growth for our company.

•Comparable lease—We use this term to refer to a lease with consistent terms that is executed for substantially the same space that has been vacant less than twelve months.

•Comparable rent spread—This metric is calculated as the percentage increase or decrease in first-year ABR (excluding any free rent or escalations) on new or renewal leases (excluding options) where the lease was considered a comparable lease. This metric provides an indication of our ability to generate revenue growth through leasing activity.

•Cost of executing new leases—We use this term to refer to certain costs associated with new leasing, namely, leasing commissions, tenant improvement costs, and tenant concessions.

•Portfolio retention rate—This metric is calculated by dividing (i) total square feet of retained Neighbors with current period lease expirations by (ii) the total square feet of leases expiring during the period. The portfolio retention rate

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provides insight into our ability to retain Neighbors at our shopping centers as their leases approach expiration. Generally, the costs to retain an existing Neighbor are lower than costs to replace with a new Neighbor.

•Recovery rate—This metric is calculated by dividing (i) total recovery income by (ii) total recoverable expenses during the period. A high recovery rate is an indicator of our ability to recover certain property operating expenses and capital costs from our Neighbors.

FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE—In addition to financial metrics calculated in accordance with GAAP, such as net income or cash flows from operations, we utilize non-GAAP metrics to measure our operational and financial performance. See “Non-GAAP Measures” below for further discussion on the following metrics.

•Adjusted Earnings Before Interest, Taxes, Depreciation, and Amortization for Real Estate (“Adjusted EBITDAre”)—To arrive at Adjusted EBITDAre, we adjust EBITDAre, as defined below, to exclude certain recurring and non-recurring items including, but not limited to: (i) changes in the fair value of the earn-out liability; (ii) other impairment charges; (iii) amortization of basis differences in our investments in our unconsolidated joint ventures; (iv) transaction and acquisition expenses; and (v) realized performance income. We use EBITDAre and Adjusted EBITDAre as additional measures of operating performance which allow us to compare earnings independent of capital structure and evaluate debt leverage and fixed cost coverage.

•Core Funds from Operations (“FFO”)—To arrive at Core FFO, we adjust Nareit FFO attributable to stockholders and OP unit holders, as defined below, to exclude certain recurring and non-recurring items including, but not limited to: (i) depreciation and amortization of corporate assets; (ii) changes in the fair value of the earn-out liability; (iii) amortization of unconsolidated joint venture basis differences; (iv) gains or losses on the extinguishment or modification of debt and other; (v) other impairment charges; (vi) transaction and acquisition expenses; and (vii) realized performance income. We believe Nareit FFO provides insight into our operating performance as it excludes certain items that are not indicative of such performance. Core FFO provides further insight into the sustainability of our operating performance and provides an additional measure to compare our performance across reporting periods on a consistent basis by excluding items that may cause short-term fluctuations in net income (loss).

•EBITDAre—The National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (“Nareit”) defines EBITDAre as net income (loss) computed in accordance with GAAP before: (i) interest expense; (ii) income tax expense; (iii) depreciation and amortization; (iv) gains or losses from disposition of depreciable property; and (v) impairment write-downs of depreciable property. Adjustments for unconsolidated partnerships and joint ventures are calculated to reflect EBITDAre on the same basis.

•Equity Market Capitalization—We calculate equity market capitalization as the total dollar value of all outstanding shares using the closing price for the applicable date.

•Nareit FFO—Nareit defines FFO as net income (loss) computed in accordance with GAAP, excluding: (i) gains (or losses) from sales of property and gains (or losses) from change in control; (ii) depreciation and amortization related to real estate; (iii) impairment losses on real estate and impairments of in-substance real estate investments in investees that are driven by measurable decreases in the fair value of the depreciable real estate held by the unconsolidated partnerships and joint ventures; and (iv) adjustments for unconsolidated partnerships and joint ventures, calculated to reflect FFO on the same basis. We calculate Nareit FFO in a manner consistent with the Nareit definition.

•Net Debt—We calculate net debt as total debt, excluding discounts, market adjustments, and deferred financing expenses, less cash and cash equivalents.

•Net Debt to Adjusted EBITDAre—This ratio is calculated by dividing net debt by Adjusted EBITDAre (included on an annualized basis within the calculation). It provides insight into our leverage rate based on earnings and is not impacted by fluctuations in our equity price.

•Net Debt to Total Enterprise Value—This ratio is calculated by dividing net debt by total enterprise value, as defined below. It provides insight into our capital structure and usage of debt.

•NOI—We calculate NOI as total operating revenues, adjusted to exclude non-cash revenue items, less property operating expenses and real estate taxes. NOI provides insight about our financial and operating performance because it provides a performance measure of the revenues and expenses directly involved in owning and operating real estate assets and provides a perspective not immediately apparent from net income (loss).

•Same-Center—We use this term to refer to a property, or portfolio of properties, that have been owned and operational for the entirety of each reporting period (i.e., since January 1, 2020).

•Total Enterprise Value—We calculate total enterprise value as our net debt plus our equity market capitalization on a fully diluted basis.

OVERVIEW

We are a REIT and one of the nation’s largest owners and operators of omni-channel grocery-anchored shopping centers. Our portfolio primarily consists of neighborhood centers anchored by the #1 or #2 grocer tenants by sales within their respective formats by trade area. Our Neighbors are a mix of national, regional, and local retailers that primarily provide necessity-based goods and services.

As of December 31, 2021, we owned equity interests in 289 shopping centers, including 268 wholly-owned shopping centers and 21 shopping center properties owned through two unconsolidated joint ventures, which comprised approximately 33.0 million square feet in 31 states. In addition to managing our shopping centers, our third-party investment management

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business provides comprehensive real estate management services to our unconsolidated joint ventures and one private fund (collectively, the “Managed Funds”).

UNDERWRITTEN INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING—On July 19, 2021, we closed our underwritten IPO, through which we offered 17.0 million shares of our common stock, $0.01 par value per share, at an initial price to the public of $28.00 per share, pursuant to a registration statement filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on Form S-11 (File No. 333-255846), as amended. In connection with the underwritten IPO, the underwriters exercised a 30-day option to purchase additional shares of our common stock to cover overallotments, and, accordingly, on August 2, 2021, we settled the sale of an additional 2.6 million shares at a price of $28.00 per share. These shares are listed on Nasdaq under the trading symbol “PECO”. The underwritten IPO, including the underwriters’ overallotment election, resulted in gross proceeds of $547.4 million.

Basis of Presentation—The basis of presentation of our shares of common stock is described as follows:

•Recapitalization—On June 18, 2021, our stockholders approved an amendment to our charter (the “Articles of Amendment”) that effected a change of each share of our common stock outstanding at the time the amendment became effective into one share of a newly created class of Class B common stock (the “Recapitalization”). The Articles of Amendment became effective upon filing with, and acceptance by, the State Department of Assessments and Taxation of Maryland on July 2, 2021. Unless otherwise indicated, all information in this Form 10-K gives effect to the Recapitalization and references to “shares” and per share metrics refer to our common stock and Class B common stock, collectively. Our Class B common stock automatically converted into our publicly traded common stock on January 18, 2022 (see Note 12).

•Reverse Stock Split—On July 2, 2021, our Board approved an amendment to our charter to effect a one-for-three reverse stock split. Concurrent with the reverse split, the Operating Partnership enacted a one-for-three reverse stock split of its outstanding OP units. Unless otherwise indicated, the information in this Form 10-K gives effect to the reverse stock and OP unit splits (see Note 12).

•IPO—Following our underwritten IPO, we are presenting common stock and Class B common stock as separate classes within our consolidated balance sheets and consolidated statements of equity. Any references to “common stock” in this Form 10-K refer to our Nasdaq-listed shares sold through the underwritten IPO, whereas Class B common stock refers to the newly-created class of Class B common stock that is not listed. This applies to all historical periods presented herein.

2021 BOND OFFERING—On September 20, 2021, the SEC declared effective our bond offering registration statement as filed on Form S-3 (File Nos. 333-259059 and 333-259059-01) relating to the offer, from time to time, of an unspecified number of debt securities not to exceed a maximum aggregate offering of $1 billion (“Bond Registration”). In October 2021, in connection with this Bond Registration, we settled $350 million aggregate principal amount of 2.625% senior notes (“2021 Bond Offering”) priced at 98.692% of the principal amount and maturing in November 2031. The 2021 Bond Offering resulted in gross proceeds of $345.4 million. The notes are fully and unconditionally guaranteed by us.

AT-THE-MARKET OFFERING (“ATM”)—On February 10, 2022, we and the Operating Partnership entered into a sales agreement relating to the potential sale of shares of common stock pursuant to a continuous offering program. In accordance with the terms of the sales agreement, we may offer and sell shares of our common stock having an aggregate offering price of up to $250 million from time to time through our sales agents, or, if applicable, as forward sellers.

PORTFOLIO AND LEASING STATISTICS—Below are statistical highlights of our wholly-owned portfolio as of December 31, 2021 and 2020 (dollars and square feet in thousands):

Number of states 31 31

% ABR from omni-channel grocery-anchored shopping centers 96.7 % 97.3 %

Leased occupancy %:

Total portfolio spaces 96.3 % 94.7 %

Average remaining lease term (in years)(1) 4.6 4.5

(1)The average remaining lease term in years excludes future options to extend the term of the lease.

COVID-19 STRATEGY—During 2020, as a result of the coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic, many state governments issued “stay-at-home” mandates that generally limited travel and movement of the general public to essential activities only and required all non-essential businesses to close. All temporarily closed Neighbors have since been permitted to reopen; however, a portion of our Neighbors have permanently closed, and we continually work to backfill any remaining vacant spaces. We believe our collections have returned to levels consistent with those prior to the onset of the pandemic. All statistics and financial results included in this COVID-19 Strategy section are approximate and include the prorated portion attributable to properties owned through our unconsolidated joint ventures.

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We believe substantially all Neighbors, including those that were required to temporarily close under governmental mandates, are contractually obligated to continue with their rent payments as documented in our lease agreements with them. However, we decided to negotiate relief for a small subset of our Neighbors, including rent deferrals. As of January 20, 2022, we have $3.3 million of outstanding payment plans with our Neighbors of which approximately 84% are scheduled to be received by December 31, 2022. As of January 20, 2022, the weighted-average term over which we expect to receive remaining amounts owed on executed payment plans is approximately ten months. We cannot guarantee that we will ultimately be able to collect these amounts; however, as of January 20, 2022, the collection rate on our payment plans executed during the COVID-19 pandemic exceeded 90%.

Despite seeing improvements in collections for current and past due amounts during 2021, the negative impact the pandemic has had on our Neighbors continues to be considered in our evaluation of Neighbors who potentially pose a credit risk. For Neighbors with a higher degree of uncertainty as to their creditworthiness, we may not record revenue for amounts billed until the cash is received. For the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, we had $3.6 million and $28.5 million, respectively, in net unfavorable monthly revenue adjustments for Neighbors who were being accounted for on a cash basis. As of December 31, 2021, our Neighbors currently being accounted for on a cash basis represented approximately 7% of our total Neighbor spaces, or approximately 5.9% of portfolio ABR. Further, many of our Neighbors who are on a cash basis of accounting are actively making payments toward their outstanding balances. When considering the ABR associated with Neighbors who are currently on a cash basis of accounting, 84% of this ABR is represented by Neighbors who are actively making payments.

Certain of our Neighbors were unable to remain in their spaces as a result of the factors previously noted. Despite this fallout, our leasing activity has been strong as demand for space in our centers remains high, which generally allows us to re-lease these spaces to Neighbors who may increase our concentration of necessity-based and omni-channel retailers. For the year ended December 31, 2021, our wholly-owned portfolio retention rate was 87.8%. Additionally, for the year ended December 31, 2021, for our wholly-owned portfolio, we executed 538 new leases, an increase as compared to both 2020 and 2019.

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS—Owning, operating, and managing well-occupied omni-channel grocery-anchored real estate is a core part of our business strategy, and as of December 31, 2021, 96.7% of our ABR was derived from omni-channel grocery-anchored shopping centers. As of December 31, 2021, total leased occupancy improved 1.6% to 96.3% and inline occupancy improved 3.8% to 92.7%, when compared to December 31, 2020. We believe that our differentiated focused strategy, coupled with our responsible balance sheet management, left our portfolio well-positioned to recover from the economic downturn resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Our financial performance highlights during 2021 are as follows:

•Net income of $17.2 million, an increase of $11.8 million from a year ago, primarily due to increased collections, higher gains on the disposal of property, and lower interest expense.

•We closed our underwritten IPO and settled the 2021 Bond Offering, which generated gross proceeds of $547.4 million and $345.4 million, respectively.

•Collections during the second half of the year reached 99% of our monthly billings; returning to pre-COVID levels.

•Core FFO improved by $0.21 to $2.19 per diluted share primarily due to increased collections and lower interest expense.

•Same-Center NOI improved 8.2% to $346.8 million.

•Acquired $308.4 million and disposed of $206.4 million of assets, beginning our external growth strategy while improving portfolio quality with our dispositions.

•We paid monthly distributions of $0.085 per share, or $1.02 annualized, through the period of September 2021 and increased monthly distributions to $0.09 per share, or $1.08 annualized, for the remainder of the year.

•Net debt to Adjusted EBITDAre - annualized was 5.6x as compared to 7.3x during the same period a year ago.

EXECUTING OUR STRATEGY—Our performance for the year is linked to our key initiatives: differentiated and focused strategy, integrated operating platform, and responsible balance sheet management. We believe these initiatives will result in long-term growth and value creation to all of our stakeholders.

Differentiated and Focused Strategy—We continually monitor the commercial real estate sector for shopping centers that meet our investment objectives. During 2021, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, our opportunities for investment in assets improved over 2020. Further, capital raised through our underwritten IPO during the third quarter of 2021 has created liquidity that we intend to use, in part, to grow our portfolio of assets. Highlights of our asset composition and acquisitions are as follows:

•96.7% of our ABR was derived from omni-channel grocery-anchored shopping centers as of December 31, 2021.

•71.6% of our ABR was derived from Neighbors providing Necessity-based goods and services.

•Acquired nine properties and five outparcels for a net cash outlay of $308.4 million, adding 1.1 million of GLA to our portfolio.

Internal Growth Through Our Integrated Operating Platform—During 2021, our leasing activity has increased as compared to both 2020 and 2019. We have focused on improving our occupancy through leasing vacant spaces, increasing lease revenue through rent growth, and executing development and redevelopment opportunities. Highlights of our wholly-owned operational activity as of and for the year ended December 31, 2021 are as follows:

•Leased occupancy for our wholly-owned portfolio improved to 96.3% as of December 31, 2021, compared to 94.7% as of December 31, 2020.

•We executed 1,135 leases (new, renewal, and options) totaling 5.6 million square feet during the year ended December 31, 2021, which was an increase from 861 leases totaling 4.7 million square feet executed during the year ended December 31, 2020.

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•Total ABR per leased square foot for executed new leases improved 6.0% to $17.11, and inline ABR per leased square foot for executed new leases improved 13.9% to $20.63 during the year ended December 31, 2021.

•As of and for the year ended December 31, 2021, we had 26 development and redevelopment projects completed or in process, which we estimate will comprise a total investment of $59.2 million.

•Created $1.0 million of incremental ABR in 2021 as a result of development and redevelopment projects completed in 2020.