ProLogis, North America’s largest real estate investment trust focused on industrial sites, said fourth-quarter profit more than tripled on higher management fees and rental income.
Net income for the Denver-based company rose to $331.1 million, or $1.28 a share, from $109.1 million, or 43 cents, a year earlier, the company today in a statement. Rental income advanced 23 percent to $245.3 million, while management fees surged to $132.6 million from $16.6 million.
ProLogis has been expanding in Europe and Asia to meet growing demand for warehouses and distribution centers. In the fourth quarter, the company said it would acquire eight distribution centers in Japan, build as much as 3.1 million square feet of capacity in the Chinese port of Dalian, and buy 3.5 million square feet of buildings in central England.
“We delivered strong financial performance by leveraging our global platform, crystallizing value in our property fund business, and maintaining a diversified development pipeline with exceptional margins,” Chief Executive Officer Jeffrey Schwartz said in the statement.
The company’s funds from operations, a measure of cash flow used by REITs, almost doubled in the quarter to $288.9 million, or $1.11 a share, from $147.1 million, or 58 cents a share, a year earlier. On that basis, which doesn’t conform with generally accepted accounting principles, the results beat the average estimate of $1.00 a share by 11 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News.
Profit for the full year more than doubled to $849 million, or $3.32 a share, from $370.7 million, or $1.76, ProLogis said. Funds from operations for 2006 jumped 65 percent to $947.9 million, or $3.69 a share, from $573.9 million, or $2.51.
The company started developments of $792 million in the quarter, taking the total for the year to $2.54 billion.
Shares of ProLogis gained $1.04 to $66.80 at 9:46 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. They rose 30 percent in 2006 through yesterday, while the Bloomberg REIT Index increased 28 percent.
