Duke Realty meets analyst predictions with quarterly results

Duke Realty Corp. on Wednesday reported a smaller profit on slightly more revenue in the second quarter, along with key performance results that met analyst expectations.

The real estate investment trust, based in Indianapolis, said it had funds from operations of $107.4 million, or 30 cents per share, in the quarter, compared with $99.1 million, or 28 cents per share, in the same period of 2016.

The FFO figure matched the average estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research. FFO  is a closely watched performance measure in the REIT industry. It takes net income and adds back items such as depreciation and amortization.

Duke said it had a profit of $108.5 million, or 31 cents per share, down from $448.8 million, or $1.30 per share, a year ago. Last year's profit figure included $507 million in gains on sales of depreciable properties, compared with $40 million this year.

The company posted revenue of $226.6 million, up from $225.9 million a year ago.

Duke said total portfolio occupancy in the quarter was 95.6 percent. In-service portfolio occupancy was a company record 96.7 percent.

"The second quarter included a significant volume of leasing activity, both in recently delivered speculative projects and vacant and expiring space within our existing properties," Duke CEO Jim Connor said in written remarks.

Duke shares closed at $27.47 each on Wednesday, an increase of 40 percent in the past year.