Finance REITs
Simons Says Will Focus on Redevelopment
April 30, 2008

At the Simon Property Group's first quarter 2008 earnings conference call David Simon, Chairman & CEO reported that first quarter FFO was $1.46 per share, up 6.6 percent over a year ago. Decreasing LIBOR rates helped, he noted. Occupancy was essentially flat he added, and "our mall portfolio, square footage loss to bankruptcy during the most recent quarter totaled 133,000 square feet as compared to 24,000 square feet during the first quarter of 2007. Even with this our occupancy at the end of the first quarter is still higher than Q1 of 2006." Simon's development and redevelopment pipeline remains intact. the company is "primarily focused on the redevelopment and expansion" of U.S. franchise assets and new premium outlet development in the United States and in Asia. Simons is also in the process of refinancing the existing $660 million of mortgage debt at amounts equal to or greater than its existing mortgages.

 
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