Kimco Realty's earnings nearly double on property sales

Kimco Realty Corp., a New Hyde Park-based real estate investment trust, reported a jump in net income in the quarter ended March 31 due to gains made on the sale of properties the company had previously operated. Revenue also rose.

Kimco, one of the largest publicly traded landlords of shopping centers in the United States, said net income attributable to the company was $144.1 million for the first quarter of 2018, nearly double the $77 million it reported in the same quarter a year earlier. During the quarter the company sold 21 shopping centers totaling 2.3 million square feet for a gross price of $219.5 million.

Funds from operations, a measure of real estate investment trust earnings that excludes gains and losses from the sale of properties, rose to $164.9 million, or 39 cents per share, from $155.1 million — 37 cents per share — a year earlier.

Revenue of $304.1 million was up from the $293.6 million in the year-earlier period.

“I think the earnings show that despite all the rumors of the death of retailers, retailers haven’t gotten the memo and continue to lease space,” said Alexander D. Goldfarb, an analyst with Manhattan-based Sandler O'Neill & Partners. While the company has some "specific issues" to address, such as reducing leverage, he said, overall occupancy numbers and rental rate growth bode well for the company. 

Kimco reported total liabilities of $5.9 billion as of March 31. 

Real estate investment trusts, or REITs, must return a majority of their profits to investors. Kimco's shares closed at $14.07, up 83 cents, on Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange. 

Kimco owns nearly 500 shopping centers in the United States, with around 30 of those — including Airport Plaza in East Farmingdale — on Long Island.