Regency Centers Projects Lower 1Q FFO

Management revised its 2009 guidance for FFO downward, projecting it will range between $3.25 and $3.50 a share.

Wall Street analysts expect Regency FFO of 81 cents a share for the quarter and $3.41 a share for the full year, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.

Regency said it expects net income will range between 26 cents and 28 cents. The company posted net income of $26.7 million, or 38 cents a share, in the first quarter last year.

At the close of the quarter, 93.3 percent of Regency's portfolio was leased, down slightly from 93.8 percent at the end of December.

Regency is scheduled to release final first-quarter financial results on May 6.

The REIT said it plans to sell 7.7 million shares of common stock in a public offering. The company plans to use the net proceeds from the stock sale to repay debts and cover general corporate expenses. Underwriters will have a 30-day option to buy another roughly 1.2 million shares.

Regency shares tumbled $4.51, or 11.7 percent, to $34.12 on Monday.