Ahead Of Macerich Q4 Results

(RTTNews) - Macerich Co. (MAC) continues to see the benefit in its operating results of the major portfolio transformation it has been through the past three years, including the sale of 15 lower productivity malls and the redeployment of that capital into more productive faster-growing assets.

The performance during the first three quarters reflects a continuing demand from retailers for locations in high quality centers that serve dense and affluent trade areas. This trend is likely to reflect in the company's to-be-announced fourth quarter results.

Macerich is a fully integrated self-managed and self-administered real estate investment trust, which focuses on the acquisition, leasing, management, development and redevelopment of regional malls throughout the United States.

The company is set to release its fourth-quarter results after the bell on Wednesday, February 3, with analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expecting earnings of $1.07 per share on revenue of $329.61 million. Analysts' estimate typically exclude certain special items.

In the previous quarter...

Net income attributable to the company was $33.6 million or $.21 per share compared to $35.9 million or $.25 per share last year. Funds from operations or FFO was $170.7 million or $1.01 per share compared to $132.6 million or $.88 per share reported a year ago.

Total revenues rose to $326.3 million from the previous year's revenue of $263.5 million.

For fiscal 2015...

The company reaffirmed its 2015 guidance for FFO of $3.86 - $3.94 per share. In confirming the guidance range, the company has factored in expected FFO dilution of $.03 per share in 2015 due to the joint ventures announced later in 2015.

As announced on September 2015, the company reached agreement to contribute minority interests in eight properties valued at $5.4 billion (at 100%), representing a cross-section of assets from the Macerich portfolio, into separate joint ventures with GIC (40% interest in five assets) and Heitman (49% interest in three assets).