Mack-Cali Realty Corporation Announces Second Quarter 2017 Results

JERSEY CITY, N.J., Aug. 2, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Mack-Cali Realty Corporation (NYSE: CLI) today reported its results for the second quarter 2017.

SECOND QUARTER 2017 HIGHLIGHTS

• Achieved Funds from Operations per diluted share of $0.60 and Core Funds from Operations growth of 9.1% to $0.60 for the quarter;
• Net loss of $0.44 per diluted share for the quarter (including the effect of net losses from property sales of $0.39 per share);
• Increased Adjusted Funds from Operations by 114.2% to $42.2 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2017, as compared to $19.7 million for the comparable period in 2016;
• Increased rental rates by 17.7% on a GAAP basis and 6.6% on a cash basis at its Core/Waterfront/Flex properties;
• Leased 728,246 square feet;
• Increased Roseland percent leased to 97.9%, up from 97.5% for the first quarter;
• Urby achieved 78% lease-up in five months at average rents of $57.50 per square foot;
• Chase II achieved 91% lease-up in seven months at average rents of $27.36 per square foot;
• Quarry Place achieved 58% lease-up in seven months at average rents of $43.20 per square foot;
• Increased quarterly common stock dividend to $0.20 per share; and
• Updated 2017 FFO guidance of $2.18 to $2.28 per diluted share, a decrease of $0.09 at the midpoint.

Michael J. DeMarco, chief executive officer, commented "Solid quarter on all operating fronts. We have made great progress on the lease-up of our completed multifamily properties and on our office sales program.  Renewal spreads and lease costs are strong in our office segment.  Tour activity has also been high.  However, our only concern has been that tenants are taking longer to commit to new leases, which is causing a delay in filling up space that we projected for 2017. We expect this to be corrected in the next two quarters."

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS

* All per share amounts presented below are on a diluted basis.

Net income (loss) available to common shareholders for the quarter ended June 30, 2017 amounted to $(37.3) million, or $(0.44) per share, as compared to $48.4 million, or $0.54 per share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2016. For the six months ended June 30, 2017, net income (loss) to common shareholders equaled $(17.5) million, or $(0.33) per share, as compared to $110.6 million, or $1.23 per share, for the same period last year.  Included in net income (loss) for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2017 was $(39.0) million and $(33.4) million, respectively, of net losses from dispositions.

Funds from Operations (FFO) for the quarter ended June 30, 2017 amounted to $60.5 million, or $0.60 per share, as compared to $64.1 million, or $0.64 per share, for the quarter ended June 30, 2016. For the six months ended June 30, 2017, FFO equaled $116.3 million, or $1.16 per share, as compared to $112.3 million, or $1.12 per share, for the same period last year.

For the second quarter 2017, Core FFO was $0.60 per share. The quarter's Core FFO per share increased 9.1 percent from the same quarter last year primarily due to increased base rents in 2017 and interest expense savings from refinancing of high rate debt.

Adjusted Funds from Operations (AFFO) increased by $22.5 million to $42.2 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2017, as compared to $19.7 million for the comparable period in 2016.

OPERATING HIGHLIGHTS

Mack-Cali's consolidated Core, Waterfront and Flex properties were 89.9 percent leased at June 30, 2017, as compared to 90.4 percent leased at March 31, 2017 and 90.6 percent leased at December 31, 2016.

For the quarter ended June 30, 2017, the Company executed 48 leases at its consolidated in-service commercial portfolio totaling 728,246 square feet. Of these totals, 18 percent were for new leases and 82 percent were for lease renewals and other tenant retention transactions. Rental rate roll up for second quarter 2017 transactions in the Company's Core, Waterfront and Flex properties was 6.6 percent on a cash basis and 17.7 percent on a GAAP basis. 

RECENT TRANSACTIONS

In April, Roseland acquired all joint venture partner interests in Monaco, Jersey City, New Jersey, the 523-apartment, two-tower, stabilized community completed in 2011. The transaction converted Roseland's non-cash flowing 15 percent subordinate interest to 100 percent.  The Monaco transaction, valued at $315 million or $602,000/unit, represents a capitalization rate of 4.66 percent on a trailing 12-month basis. 

BALANCE SHEET/CAPITAL MARKETS

As of June 30, 2017, the Company had a debt-to-undepreciated assets ratio of 47.5 percent compared to 43.8 percent at March 31, 2017 and 40.3 percent at June 30, 2016. Net debt to EBITDA for the quarter ended June 30, 2017 was 8.3 times compared to 8.5 times for the quarter ended March 31, 2017.  The Company had an interest coverage ratio of 3.5 times for the quarter ended June 30, 2017 compared to 3.8 times for the quarter ended March 31, 2017 and 3.4 times for the quarter ended June 30, 2016.

DIVIDENDS

In June 2017, the Company's Board of Directors declared an increased quarterly cash dividend of $0.20 per common share (indicating an annual rate of $0.80 per common share) for the second quarter 2017, which was paid on July 14, 2017 to shareholders of record as of July 6, 2017. This was an increase of 33.3 percent over the prior quarter and the first increased dividend since 2006.  The Company's Core FFO dividend payout ratio for the quarter was 33.2 percent.

GUIDANCE/OUTLOOK

The Company provided updated net income and FFO per diluted share guidance for the full year 2017, as follows:

This updated guidance reflects a decrease of $0.09 per diluted share from the Company's previously provided funds from operations guidance midpoint, primarily as a result of lower leasing starts ($0.06) and increased debt reduction in lieu of office acquisitions ($0.03) projected for the second half of the year.  These estimates reflect management's view of current market conditions and certain assumptions with regard to rental rates, occupancy levels and other assumptions/projections. Actual results could differ from these estimates.

CONFERENCE CALL/SUPPLEMENTAL INFORMATION

An earnings conference call with management is scheduled for August 3, 2017 at 8:30 a.m. Eastern Time, which will be broadcast live via the Internet at:
http://phoenix.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?p=irol-eventDetails&c=96021&eventID=5260386

The live conference call is also accessible by calling (323) 794-2130 and requesting the Mack-Cali conference call. 

The conference call will be rebroadcast on Mack-Cali's website at https://www.mack-cali.com/investors/events-presentations/ beginning at 12:00 p.m. Eastern Time on August 3, 2017 through August 3, 2018.

A replay of the call will also be accessible August 3, 2017 through August 10, 2017 by calling (719) 457-0820 and using the pass code, 2716622.

Copies of Mack-Cali's Form 10-Q and Supplemental Operating and Financial Data are available on Mack-Cali's website, as follows:

Second Quarter 2017 Form 10-Q:
https://www.mack-cali.com/media/1047483/2ndquarter10q17.pdf

Second Quarter 2017 Supplemental Operating and Financial Data:
https://www.mack-cali.com/media/1047489/2ndquartersp17.pdf

In addition, these items are available upon request from:
Mack-Cali Investor Relations Department - Deidre Crockett
Harborside 3, 210 Hudson St., Ste. 400, Jersey City, New Jersey 07311
(732) 590-1025

INFORMATION ABOUT FFO

Funds from operations ("FFO") is defined as net income (loss) before noncontrolling interests of unitholders, computed in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"), excluding gains or losses from depreciable rental property transactions, and impairments related to depreciable rental property, plus real estate-related depreciation and amortization. The Company believes that FFO per share is helpful to investors as one of several measures of the performance of an equity REIT. The Company further believes that as FFO per share excludes the effect of depreciation, gains (or losses) from sales of properties and impairments related to depreciable rental property (all of which are based on historical costs which may be of limited relevance in evaluating current performance), FFO per share can facilitate comparison of operating performance between equity REITs.

FFO per share should not be considered as an alternative to net income available to common shareholders per share as an indication of the Company's performance or to cash flows as a measure of liquidity.  FFO per share presented herein is not necessarily comparable to FFO per share presented by other real estate companies due to the fact that not all real estate companies use the same definition. However, the Company's FFO per share is comparable to the FFO per share of real estate companies that use the current definition of the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts ("NAREIT"). A reconciliation of net income per share to FFO per share is included in the financial tables accompanying this press release.

Core FFO is defined as FFO, as adjusted for certain items to facilitate comparative measurement of the Company's performance over time.  Core FFO is presented solely as supplemental disclosure that the Company's management believes provides useful information to investors and analysts of its results, after adjusting for certain items to facilitate comparability of its performance from period to period. Core FFO is a non-GAAP financial measure that is not intended to represent cash flow and is not indicative of cash flows provided by operating activities as determined in accordance with GAAP.  As there is not a generally accepted definition established for Core FFO, the Company's measures of Core FFO may not be comparable to the Core FFO reported by other REITs.  A reconciliation of net income per share to Core FFO in dollars and per share is included in the financial tables accompanying this press release.

ABOUT THE COMPANY

Mack-Cali Realty Corporation is a fully integrated, self-administered, self-managed real estate investment trust (REIT) providing management, leasing, development, and other tenant-related services for its two-platform operations of waterfront and transit-based office and luxury multifamily assets.  Mack-Cali provides its tenants and residents with the most innovative communities that empower them to re-imagine the way they work and live.

Additional information on Mack-Cali Realty Corporation and the commercial real estate properties and multifamily residential communities available for lease can be found on the Company's website at www.mack-cali.com.

The information in this press release must be read in conjunction with, and is modified in its entirety by, the Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q (the "10-Q") filed by the Company for the same period with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") and all of the Company's other public filings with the SEC (the "Public Filings"). In particular, the financial information contained herein is subject to and qualified by reference to the financial statements contained in the 10-Q, the footnotes thereto and the limitations set forth therein. Investors may not rely on the press release without reference to the 10-Q and the Public Filings.

We consider portions of this report, including the documents incorporated by reference, to be forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.  We intend such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in Section 21E of such act.  Such forward-looking statements relate to, without limitation, our future economic performance, plans and objectives for future operations and projections of revenue and other financial items.  Forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may," "will," "plan," "potential," "projected," "should," "expect," "anticipate," "estimate," "target," "continue" or comparable terminology.  Forward-looking statements are inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which we cannot predict with accuracy and some of which we might not even anticipate.  Although we believe that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions at the time made, we can give no assurance that such expectations will be achieved.  Future events and actual results, financial and otherwise, may differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements.  Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements.

SOURCE Mack-Cali Realty Corporation

Related Links

http://www.mack-cali.com