DDR Ddr Corp.

BEACHWOOD, Ohio, Oct. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- DDR Corp. (NYSE: DDR) today announced operating results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2014. 

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Significant Third Quarter Activity

• Generated Operating FFO of $0.29 per diluted share, a 3.6% increase from the third quarter of 2013
• Executed 342 new leases and renewals for 2.7 million square feet
• Increased the U.S. portfolio leased rate by 30 basis points to 95.6% from 95.3% at June 30, 2014 and by 80 basis points from 94.8% at September 30, 2013
• Generated positive new leasing spreads of 23.6% on a pro rata basis, and positive renewal leasing spreads of 8.2% on a pro rata basis
• Generated same store net operating income growth of 3.1% at 100% ownership and on a pro rata basis compared to the prior year
• Acquired sole ownership of eight prime power centers, including seven from an existing joint venture with Blackstone, for $409 million at DDR's share
• Sold $297 million of assets; DDR's pro rata gross proceeds were $290 million
• In October, closed on a new unconsolidated joint venture with Blackstone that acquired a portfolio of 71 shopping centers with a total cost of $1.93 billion

"The continued execution of our strategic plan has resulted in another consistently strong quarter," commented Daniel B. Hurwitz, DDR's chief executive officer.  "Our portfolio and operating platform continue to perform at a high level and the outlook for our business remains robust."

Financial Highlights

• Third quarter operating funds from operations attributable to common shareholders ("Operating FFO") increased $16.2 million to $106.2 million, or $0.29 per diluted share, compared to $90.0 million, or $0.28 per diluted share, for the prior-year comparable period.
• Third quarter net income attributable to common shareholders was $63.0 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, which compares to net loss of $7.0 million, or $0.02 per diluted share, for the prior-year comparable period.

Significant Third Quarter Operating Activity

• Executed 148 new leases totaling 0.7 million square feet at positive spreads of 23.6% on a pro rata basis
• Executed 194 renewal leases totaling 2.0 million square feet at positive spreads of 8.2% on a pro rata basis
• Increased the annualized base rent per occupied square foot to $13.65 at September 30, 2014 as compared to $13.19 at September 30, 2013

Significant Third Quarter Transactional Activity

• Acquired sole ownership of a portfolio of seven prime power centers totaling 2.3 million square feet that were previously owned in a joint venture with Blackstone for $377 million at DDR's share. The investment was funded through a combination of preferred equity repayment, the assumption of existing mortgage debt and cash.
• Acquired one consolidated prime power center totaling 0.2 million square feet for $31.5 million.
• Sold seven consolidated operating shopping centers totaling 2.0 million square feet and two land parcels generating gross proceeds of $263 million. A net gain of $59.4 million was recorded related to these sales. One of the land parcels sold was the entire remaining acreage of land held for development in Russia. The Company no longer has any real estate investments in Russia. 
• In October, acquired (through a joint venture with partner, Blackstone) a portfolio of 71 shopping centers from American Realty Capital Properties, Inc. The joint venture assumed approximately $437 million of senior non-recourse debt and has also originated an additional $800 million non-recourse loan facility. The Company's investment includes $20 million of common equity and $300 million in preferred equity with a fixed dividend rate of 8.5% and the Company will provide customary leasing and management services. An affiliate of Blackstone owns 95% of the common equity of the joint venture and an affiliate of DDR owns the remaining 5%. DDR has the right of first offer to acquire ten of the assets under specified conditions consistent with past transactions with Blackstone.

CEO Succession

• As previously announced, Daniel B. Hurwitz, chief executive officer, and the Board of Directors agreed not to renew Mr. Hurwitz's employment agreement, which expires December 31, 2015.  The Board of Directors has retained an executive search firm to assist in the process of securing Mr. Hurwitz's successor.

2014 Guidance

• The Company is revising its 2014 guidance for Operating FFO to a range between $1.15 to $1.17 per diluted share from $1.14 to $1.18 per diluted share.

Non-GAAP Disclosures
FFO is a supplemental non-GAAP financial measurement used as a standard in the real estate industry and a widely accepted measure of real estate investment trust ("REIT") performance.  Management believes that FFO and Operating FFO provide additional indicators of the financial performance of a REIT.  The Company also believes that FFO and Operating FFO more appropriately measure the core operations of the Company and provide benchmarks to its peer group.  Neither FFO nor Operating FFO represents cash generated from operating activities in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"), is necessarily indicative of cash available to fund cash needs and should be considered as an alternative to net income computed in accordance with GAAP as an indicator of the Company's operating performance or as an alternative to cash flow as a measure of liquidity.

FFO is defined and calculated by the Company as net income, adjusted to exclude:  (i) preferred share dividends, (ii) gains and losses from disposition of depreciable real estate property, which are presented net of taxes, (iii) impairment charges on depreciable real estate property and related investments, (iv) extraordinary items and (v) certain non-cash items.  These non-cash items principally include real property depreciation and amortization of intangibles, equity income from joint ventures and equity income from non-controlling interests and the Company's proportionate share of FFO from its unconsolidated joint ventures and non-controlling interests, determined on a consistent basis.  The Company calculates Operating FFO by excluding the non-operating charges and gains described below.  The Company computes FFO in accordance with the NAREIT definition.  Other real estate companies may calculate FFO and Operating FFO in a different manner.  Operating FFO is useful to investors as the Company removes these charges and gains to analyze the results of its operations and assess performance of the core operating real estate portfolio.  A reconciliation of net income (loss) to FFO and Operating FFO is presented herein.

Safe Harbor
DDR Corp. considers portions of the information in this press release to be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, both as amended, with respect to the Company's expectation for future periods.  Although the Company believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved.  For this purpose, any statements contained herein that are not historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements.  There are a number of important factors that could cause our results to differ materially from those indicated by such forward-looking statements, including, among other factors, local conditions such as oversupply of space or a reduction in demand for real estate in the area; competition from other available space; dependence on rental income from real property; the loss of, significant downsizing of or bankruptcy of a major tenant; constructing properties or expansions that produce a desired yield on investment; our ability to buy or sell assets on commercially reasonable terms; our ability to complete acquisitions or dispositions of assets under contract; our ability to secure equity or debt financing on commercially acceptable terms or at all; our ability to enter into definitive agreements with regard to our financing and joint venture arrangements or our failure to satisfy conditions to the completion of these arrangements; the success of our capital recycling strategy; and the finalization of the financial statements for the three-month period ended September 30, 2014.  For additional factors that could cause the results of the Company to differ materially from those indicated in the forward-looking statements, please refer to the Company's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013, as amended.  The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly revise these forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances that arise after the date hereof.

About DDR Corp.
DDR is an owner and manager of 456 value-oriented shopping centers representing 125 million square feet in 42 states and Puerto Rico.  The Company's assets are concentrated in high barrier-to-entry markets with stable populations and high growth potential and its portfolio is actively managed to create long-term shareholder value. DDR is a self-administered and self-managed REIT operating as a fully integrated real estate company, and is publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol DDR.  Additional information about the Company is available at www.ddr.com, as well as on Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook.

Conference Call and Supplemental Information
A copy of the Company's Supplemental package is available upon request to Brooke Vanek at the Company's corporate office, 3300 Enterprise Parkway, Beachwood, Ohio 44122 or at www.ddr.com.

The Company will hold its quarterly conference call tomorrow, October 28, 2014, at 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time.  To participate, please dial 866.318.8614 (domestic) or 617.399.5133 (international) at least ten minutes prior to the scheduled start of the call.  When prompted, provide the passcode: 73809437.  The conference call webcast will be recorded and available for replay beginning at 12:00 p.m. ET on October 28, 2014 through the Investors portion of DDR's website, http://ir.ddr.com/events.cfm.

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SOURCE DDR Corp.