Vornado Realty Trust 3rd-qtr funds from operations up 15 percent on sale of K Street building

Vornado posts jump in 3Q FFO on K Street sale

PARAMUS, N.J. — Vornado Realty Trust on Tuesday said its third-quarter profit rose 15 percent, benefiting from the sale of an office building in Washington, D.C. and its investment in Toys R Us.

The company posted funds from operations of $234.2 million, or $1.25 per share, compared with $159.8 million, or 97 cents per share, in the third quarter of 2008.

Adjusted for certain items, FFO rose a penny to $1.18 per share.

The per-share results reflect a 14 percent hike in the number of outstanding shares year- over-year following a public offering during the quarter.

Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, on average, expected FFO of $1.17 per share. Their estimates typically exclude one-time items.

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

Revenue slipped to $671.2 million, from $676.1 million in the year-ago period.

Wall Street expected revenue of $637.3 million.

Net income jumped more than fivefold, to $126.3 million, or 69 cents per share, from $22.7 million, or 14 cents per share, last year.

The results reflected a $41.2 million gain on the Sept. 1 sale of 1999 K Street, a newly developed Washington, D.C., office building.

Vornado’s shares rose 25 cents to $60.49 in afternoon trading.