LNR Exceeds Q3 Market Forecast

MIAMI-LNR Property Corp. beat the market forecast for the third quarter ended Aug. 31 by posting record earnings per share of $1.

The Miami-based real estate investment, finance and management company also beat the forecast of 96 cents per share, as tracked by Thomson/First Call, while about half of its remaining property portfolio is still undergoing development or repositioning.

Since most of the properties under development are pre-leased, the company anticipates increased income in future quarters from tenant rent as those properties are completed.

Although reporting about a 6% increase in third-quarter earnings, the company also is showing a 10% decline in total revenue. The company attributed the decline to the timing of asset sales, reduced interest income on floating-rate assets and a shift in the mix of assets.

The company reported net earnings of $35.2 million, or $1 per diluted share, on total revenue of $117.4 million for the three months ended Aug. 31, compared with net of $33.1 million, or 95 cents per diluted share, on total revenue of $130.3 million for the same period in 2000.

Released after the markets closed Monday, the earnings report had no apparent impact on LNR’s publicly traded common stock, which closed up 30 cents at $28.05 on volume of 136,700. The issue has experienced considerable volatility over the past month, closing as a recent high of $34 a share on Aug. 26, then falling to a recent low of $26.45 on Sept. 21.

The company also reported net earnings of $99.6 million, or $2.85 per diluted share, on total revenue of $358.7 million for the nine months ended Aug. 31, compared with net of $88 million, or $2.52 per diluted share, on total revenue of $351 million for the same period in 2000.