A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Liberty Property . Shares have added about 3.5% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Liberty Property due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
Liberty Property Q2 FFO & Revenues Surpass Estimates
Liberty Property reported second-quarter 2018 adjusted FFO per share of 69 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 65 cents.
Total operating revenues of around $176.6 million for the quarter also outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $166.5 million. Additionally, the reported figure increased 8% year over year. The company also revised its guidance for 2018.
Notably, the company reported NAREIT FFO for the quarter of 12 cents, which was impacted by development service fee expenses and non-cash impairment charge, totaling $86.0 million, or 57 cents per share. In the prior-year quarter, the company reported NARIET FFO of 65 cents.
During the reported quarter, Liberty Property accomplished lease deals for 6.1 million square feet of space. As of Jun 30, 2018, occupancy at the company’s operating portfolio, spanning 102.9 million square feet of space, expanded 30 basis points (bps) sequentially to 97%.
Quarter in Detail
Liberty Property’s industrial portfolio, spanning 96.1 million square feet of area, enjoyed occupancy of 97% at the end of the second quarter, marking an expansion of 30 bps from the last reported quarter. Industrial rents escalated 14.7% on retained and replacement leases commenced during the quarter.
The office portfolio, comprising 6.8 million square feet of space, had occupancy of 96.6%, up 70 bps from the previous quarter. Office rents were up 18% on retained and replacement leases.
Same-store operating income for the industrial portfolio jumped 5.5% on a cash and 4.1% on a GAAP basis.
Portfolio Activity
During the April-June quarter, Liberty acquired three industrial properties, spanning 774,000 square feet of space, for $97.5 million.
On the other hand, Liberty Property sold a 208,000-square-foot office building — 5 Crescent Drive at the Philadelphia Navy Yard — for $130.5 million.
The company brought into service five wholly-owned development properties, having 1.6 million square feet of leasable space and 94.7% occupied as of the end of the quarter, for a total investment of $163.4 million. Further, Liberty Property commenced development of two wholly-owned properties during the quarter, aggregating 924,000 square feet of leasable space, at an estimated investment of $96.5 million.
Balance-Sheet Position
Liberty Property exited second-quarter 2018 with cash and cash equivalents of around $24.2 million, up from $11.9 million recorded at the end of December 2017.
Outlook
Liberty Property revised its outlook for 2018. The company now guides FFO per share of $2.58-$2.65 compared to its previous outlook of $2.55-$2.65.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates.
VGM Scores
At this time, Liberty Property has a subpar Growth Score of D, however its Momentum is doing a lot better with an A. However, the stock was allocated a grade of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
The company's stock is suitable solely for momentum based on our styles scores.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Interestingly, Liberty Property has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.
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Why Is Liberty Property (LPT) Up 3.5% Since Last Earnings Report?
A month has gone by since the last earnings report for Liberty Property . Shares have added about 3.5% in that time frame, outperforming the S&P 500.
Will the recent positive trend continue leading up to its next earnings release, or is Liberty Property due for a pullback? Before we dive into how investors and analysts have reacted as of late, let's take a quick look at the most recent earnings report in order to get a better handle on the important catalysts.
Liberty Property Q2 FFO & Revenues Surpass Estimates
Liberty Property reported second-quarter 2018 adjusted FFO per share of 69 cents, which surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 65 cents.
Total operating revenues of around $176.6 million for the quarter also outpaced the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $166.5 million. Additionally, the reported figure increased 8% year over year. The company also revised its guidance for 2018.
Notably, the company reported NAREIT FFO for the quarter of 12 cents, which was impacted by development service fee expenses and non-cash impairment charge, totaling $86.0 million, or 57 cents per share. In the prior-year quarter, the company reported NARIET FFO of 65 cents.
During the reported quarter, Liberty Property accomplished lease deals for 6.1 million square feet of space. As of Jun 30, 2018, occupancy at the company’s operating portfolio, spanning 102.9 million square feet of space, expanded 30 basis points (bps) sequentially to 97%.
Quarter in Detail
Liberty Property’s industrial portfolio, spanning 96.1 million square feet of area, enjoyed occupancy of 97% at the end of the second quarter, marking an expansion of 30 bps from the last reported quarter. Industrial rents escalated 14.7% on retained and replacement leases commenced during the quarter.
The office portfolio, comprising 6.8 million square feet of space, had occupancy of 96.6%, up 70 bps from the previous quarter. Office rents were up 18% on retained and replacement leases.
Same-store operating income for the industrial portfolio jumped 5.5% on a cash and 4.1% on a GAAP basis.
Portfolio Activity
During the April-June quarter, Liberty acquired three industrial properties, spanning 774,000 square feet of space, for $97.5 million.
On the other hand, Liberty Property sold a 208,000-square-foot office building — 5 Crescent Drive at the Philadelphia Navy Yard — for $130.5 million.
The company brought into service five wholly-owned development properties, having 1.6 million square feet of leasable space and 94.7% occupied as of the end of the quarter, for a total investment of $163.4 million. Further, Liberty Property commenced development of two wholly-owned properties during the quarter, aggregating 924,000 square feet of leasable space, at an estimated investment of $96.5 million.
Balance-Sheet Position
Liberty Property exited second-quarter 2018 with cash and cash equivalents of around $24.2 million, up from $11.9 million recorded at the end of December 2017.
Outlook
Liberty Property revised its outlook for 2018. The company now guides FFO per share of $2.58-$2.65 compared to its previous outlook of $2.55-$2.65.
How Have Estimates Been Moving Since Then?
In the past month, investors have witnessed a downward trend in fresh estimates.
VGM Scores
At this time, Liberty Property has a subpar Growth Score of D, however its Momentum is doing a lot better with an A. However, the stock was allocated a grade of D on the value side, putting it in the bottom 40% for this investment strategy.
Overall, the stock has an aggregate VGM Score of D. If you aren't focused on one strategy, this score is the one you should be interested in.
The company's stock is suitable solely for momentum based on our styles scores.
Outlook
Estimates have been broadly trending downward for the stock and the magnitude of these revisions indicates a downward shift. Interestingly, Liberty Property has a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). We expect an in-line return from the stock in the next few months.