EX-99 3 w88575exv99.htm PRESS RELEASE DATED JULY 21, 2003 exv99
 

     
(LIBERTY LOGO)   Press Release
         
For Immediate Release   Inquiries:   Jeanne A. Leonard
July 21, 2003       Liberty Property Trust
        610/648-1704

LIBERTY PROPERTY TRUST ANNOUNCES
SECOND QUARTER RESULTS

Malvern, PA — Liberty Property Trust (NYSE:LRY) reported that net income per common share (diluted) increased to $.57 per share for the quarter ended June 30, 2003, from $.55 per share (diluted) for the quarter ended June, 2002.

Funds from operations (“FFO”) for the second quarter of 2003 decreased to $.81 from $.85 for the second quarter of 2002. A reconciliation of second quarter FFO to GAAP net income is included in the financial tables accompanying this press release.

Included in second quarter revenue are $2.3 million in lease termination fees. Liberty’s general and administration expenses for the quarter include $1.9 million in costs related to the death of former chairman Willard G. Rouse III, primarily due to the accelerated vesting of restricted stock and options.

“Liberty’s second quarter results confirm that we continue to execute well in a difficult environment,” commented William P. Hankowsky, Liberty’s chairman and chief executive officer. “We are pleased that our efforts have led to a fairly significant increase in occupancy since the last quarter, but the economic reality of the real estate markets has not changed – there is intense competition for every tenant and rents are still under pressure. We see no sign of a real estate recovery yet, and we are therefore reaffirming our previous guidance for 2003 funds from operations of $3.20 – $3.35.”

Real Estate Investments

Development: During the second quarter, Liberty brought into service one development property, a 252,193 square foot headquarters facility for a division of PPL Corporation, in Allentown, Pennsylvania. At a current occupancy of 85.3 percent, this property is providing a return in excess of 11 percent on Liberty’s $60.7 million investment.

Two new developments commenced during the quarter. In Milwaukee, Liberty has begun construction on an 87,500 square foot office building, which has been 94 percent committed to e-Funds Corporation, a leading provider of electronic funds transfer services, and a Liberty tenant in Minnesota. Liberty has also begun construction of a 74,168 square foot office building in Fort Washington, PA, which is 57 percent leased to URS Corporation, the international construction management and engineering firm.

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LRY Second Quarter 2003 Results
Page 2

As of quarter end, Liberty had 731,148 square feet under development, representing a total investment of $80.8 million. These properties were 81 percent leased at June 30.

Dispositions: During the quarter, Liberty sold seven properties containing 409,316 square feet and 87 acres of land for proceeds of $36 million. The properties sold include the majority of Liberty’s Bucks County, PA industrial distribution portfolio, and additional non-core assets in the Lehigh Valley and High Point, North Carolina.

Portfolio Performance

Leasing: At June 30, Liberty’s in-service portfolio of 52 million square feet was 91.2 percent occupied, up from the first quarter 2003 occupancy of 89.0 percent, and down from 92.5 percent for the same quarter last year. During the quarter, Liberty completed lease transactions totaling more than 3.6 million square feet of space.

Same Store Performance: Property-level operating income for same store properties decreased by 1.4 percent on both a cash basis and on a straight line basis.

Earnings Guidance

As stated earlier, Liberty expects to report funds from operations for 2003 in the range of $3.20-$3.35. A reconciliation of FFO to GAAP net income for this range is below:

                 
    Range
   
    Low   High
   
 
Projected net income per share
  $ 1.74     $ 1.89  
Depreciation and amortization
  $ 1.53     $ 1.53  
Minority interest share of addbacks
    (0.07 )     (0.07 )
Projected funds from operations per share
  $ 3.20     $ 3.35  

About the Company

Liberty Property Trust (NYSE:LRY) is a leading real estate company dedicated to enhancing people’s lives through extraordinary work environments. Liberty’s 52 million square foot portfolio of office and industrial properties offers exceptional locations, flexible design, thoughtful amenities, superior service, and state-of-the-art technology to the Company’s 1,900 tenants. Liberty increases the value of this portfolio through expert property management, marketing and development.

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LRY Second Quarter 2003 Results
Page 3

Additional information about the company, including Liberty’s Quarterly Supplemental Package with detailed financial information is available in the Investor section of the Company’s web site at www.libertyproperty.com. The second quarter supplemental package will be available on-line by 8:00 a.m. on July 22, 2003. If you are unable to access the web site, a copy of the supplemental package may be obtained by contacting Liberty by phone at 610-648-1708, or by e-mail to eshoemaker@libertyproperty.com.

Liberty will host a conference call during which management will discuss second quarter results, on Tuesday, July 22, 2003, at 2:00 p.m. eastern time. To access the conference call in the United States or Canada, please dial 1-888-870-2815. For international access, dial 706-643-7691. No password or code is needed. A replay of the call will be available by dialing 1-800-642-1687 for US/Canada participants or 706-645-9291 for international participants. A passcode is needed for the replay: 1575200. The call can also be accessed live via the Internet on the Investor Relations page of Liberty’s web site at www.libertyproperty.com for one week following the call.

The statements contained in this press release may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities law. Although Liberty believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved. As forward-looking statements, these statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the expected results. These factors include, without limitation, the uncertainties affecting real estate businesses generally (such as entry into new leases, renewals of leases and dependence on tenants’ business operations), risks relating to our ability to maintain and increase property occupancy and rental rates, the financial condition of tenants, the uncertainties of real estate development and construction activity, the costs and availability of financing, the effects of local economic and market conditions, regulatory changes, potential liability relative to environmental matters and other risks and uncertainties detailed in the company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company assumes no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking statements that become untrue because of subsequent events.

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Liberty Property Trust
Balance Sheet
June 30, 2003
(In thousands, except share amounts)

                   
      June 30, 2003   December 31, 2002
     
 
Assets
               
Real estate:
               
 
Land and land improvements
  $ 525,050     $ 504,808  
 
Building and improvements
    3,181,224       3,048,676  
 
Less: accumulated depreciation
    (533,806 )     (485,206 )
 
   
     
 
 
Operating real estate
    3,172,468       3,068,278  
 
Development in progress
    46,136       163,379  
 
Land held for development
    164,303       163,142  
 
   
     
 
 
Net real estate
    3,382,907       3,394,799  
 
Cash and cash equivalents
    26,268       11,071  
 
Accounts receivable
    11,327       14,349  
 
Deferred financing and leasing costs, net of accumulated amortization (2003, $80,419; 2002, $75,833)
    80,813       71,544  
 
Investment in unconsolidated joint ventures
    16,793       14,963  
 
Prepaid expenses and other assets
    119,022       120,335  
 
   
     
 
 
Total assets
  $ 3,637,130     $ 3,627,061  
 
   
     
 
Liabilities
               
 
Mortgage loans
  $ 310,670     $ 315,263  
 
Unsecured notes
    1,405,000       1,418,924  
 
Credit facility
    121,000       132,000  
 
Accounts payable
    22,776       24,116  
 
Accrued interest
    32,548       32,571  
 
Dividend payable
    49,308       48,040  
 
Other liabilities
    88,852       96,119  
 
   
     
 
 
Total liabilities
    2,030,154       2,067,033  
 
   
     
 
 
Minority interest
    204,247       208,439  
Shareholders’ Equity
               
 
Common shares of beneficial interest, $.001 par value, 191,200,000 shares authorized, 78,702,032 (includes 59,100 in treasury) and 76,484,612 (includes 59,100 in treasury) shares issued and outstanding as of June 30, 2003 and December 31, 2002, respectively
    79       76  
 
Additional paid-in capital
    1,471,073       1,410,900  
 
Unearned compensation
    (4,007 )     (1,750 )
 
Distributions in excess of net income
    (63,089 )     (56,310 )
 
Common shares in treasury, at cost, 59,100 shares as of June 30, 2003 and December 31, 2002
    (1,327 )     (1,327 )
 
   
     
 
 
Total shareholders’ equity
    1,402,729       1,351,589  
 
Total liabilities & shareholders’ equity
  $ 3,637,130     $ 3,627,061  
 
   
     
 

 


 

Liberty Property Trust
Statement of Operations
June 30, 2003
(In thousands, except per share amounts)

                                   
      Quarter Ended   Year to Date
     
 
      June 30, 2003   June 30, 2002   June 30, 2003   June 30, 2002
     
 
 
 
Revenue
                               
Rental
  $ 109,411     $ 106,402     $ 222,068     $ 211,826  
Operating expense reimbursement
    40,647       39,095       84,502       79,097  
Equity in earnings of unconsolidated joint ventures
    473             915        
Interest and other
    2,260       2,025       4,152       3,598  
 
   
     
     
     
 
 
Total revenue
    152,791       147,522       311,637       294,521  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Operating Expenses
                               
Rental property
    28,135       27,460       60,444       54,913  
Real estate taxes
    15,488       14,546       30,224       28,805  
Interest
    31,089       28,287       61,506       56,086  
General and administrative
    8,840       5,634       15,268       11,604  
Depreciation and amortization
    31,188       27,428       59,942       53,602  
 
   
     
     
     
 
 
Total operating expenses
    114,740       103,355       227,384       205,010  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Income before property dispositions and minority interest
    38,051       44,167       84,253       89,511  
Gain on property dispositions
          1,760       598       1,242  
Minority interest
    (4,673 )     (5,902 )     (10,268 )     (10,528 )
 
   
     
     
     
 
Income from continuing operations
    33,378       40,025       74,583       80,225  
Discontinued operations net of minority interest (including net gain on property dispositions of $11,093 and $4,280 for the quarters ended June 30, 2003 and 2002, and $11,256 and $5,669 for the six months ended June 30, 2003 and 2002)
    11,651       4,479       12,033       6,479  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Net income
    45,029       44,504       86,616       86,704  
Preferred share distributions
          (2,750 )           (5,500 )
 
   
     
     
     
 
Income available to common shareholders
  $ 45,029     $ 41,754     $ 86,616     $ 81,204  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Basic income per common share:
                               
 
Continuing operations
  $ 0.43     $ 0.50     $ 0.96     $ 1.00  
 
   
     
     
     
 
 
Discontinued operations
  $ 0.15     $ 0.06     $ 0.16     $ 0.09  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Total basic income per common share:
  $ 0.58     $ 0.56     $ 1.12     $ 1.09  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Diluted income per common share:
                               
 
Continuing operations
  $ 0.42     $ 0.49     $ 0.95     $ 0.98  
 
   
     
     
     
 
 
Discontinued operations
  $ 0.15     $ 0.06     $ 0.15     $ 0.09  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Total diluted income per common share:
  $ 0.57     $ 0.55     $ 1.10     $ 1.07  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Adjustments:
                               
Minority interest excluding preferred unit distributions
    2,117       2,138       4,110       4,219  
Depreciation and amortization of unconsolidated joint ventures
    161             327        
Depreciation and amortization
    30,783       27,286       59,246       53,364  
Gain on property dispositions
    (11,093 )     (3,536 )     (11,271 )     (4,407 )
 
   
     
     
     
 
Funds from operations
  $ 66,997     $ 67,642     $ 139,028     $ 134,380  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Funds from operations per share — diluted
  $ 0.81     $ 0.85     $ 1.69     $ 1.69  
 
   
     
     
     
 
Diluted weighted average shares
    82,947       80,047       82,264       79,554  
 
   
     
     
     
 

Funds from operations is defined by NAREIT as net income (computed in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”)), excluding gains (or losses) from sales of property, plus depreciation and amortization, and after adjustments for unconsolidated partnerships and joint ventures. Funds from operations does not represent net income or cash flows from operations as defined by GAAP and does not necessarily indicate that cash flows will be sufficient to fund cash needs. It should not be considered as an alternative to net income as an indicator of the Company’s operating performance or to cash flows as a measure of liquidity. Funds from operations also does not represent cash flows generated from operating, investing or financing activities as defined by GAAP.