AvalonBay's First-quarter Results Edge Up

ALEXANDRIA, Va. (AP) — AvalonBay Communities Inc., a real-estate investment trust focusing on upscale areas, said Wednesday its first-quarter funds from operations rose slightly and beat Wall Street expectations.

During the quarter, funds from operations attributable to common stockholders was $100.98 million, or $1.27 per share, up 5.1 percent from $96.1 million, or $1.24 a share, a year earlier.

On average, analysts polled by Thomson One were expecting quarterly funds from operations of $1.20 per share.

FFO, a widely used gauge of real estate operating performance, adds depreciation and amortization expenses, as well as other non-operating items, to net income.

For the three months ending March 31, net income was $47.4 million, or 59 cents per share, compared with $48.5 million, or 60 cents per share, in the year-earlier period.

Analysts were expecting quarterly earnings of 65 cents per share.

Bryce Blair, chairman and CEO, said in the statement that the company strengthened its liquidity with the reduction of development activity and the closing of its $740 million secured facility.

The actions should help mitigate any negative impact on rental demand as unemployment rises, he said.