Public Storage 2Q Profit Up 49% On Stronger Dollar

   DOW JONES NEWSWIRES 
 

Public Storage Inc.'s (PSA) second-quarter profit jumped 49% on the stronger dollar while rents and occupancy fell slightly.

The real-estate investment trust, which has interests in more than 2,000 storage facilities in 38 states as well as operations in Europe, has seen revenue fall on lower demand during the recession.

For the latest quarter, Public Storage reported a profit of $199.2 million, or 80 cents a share, up from $133.8 million, or 40 cents a share, a year earlier. The latest results included a $33.2 million foreign-exchange gain and a $8.2 million write-down while the prior year had $25.4 million in divestiture costs.

Funds from operations, a key measure of REIT profitability, was flat at $1.25 a share. Excluding the effect of foreign-currency changes and other items, FFO rose to $1.40 a share from $1.10. Revenue slid 3.5% to $346.8 million.

Analysts' estimates were for per-share FFO of $1.21 and revenue of $394 million, according to a poll by Thomson Reuters.

At facilities the company has operated since 2007, revenue decreased 3.5% because of a 2.9% reduction in realized rent per occupied square foot and a 1.1% reduction in average occupancies.

Public Storage's shares rose 17 cents to $75.30 in after-hours trading. The stock has gained more than two-thirds from a five-year low in March but is still down a quarter from last September.

-By Kathy Shwiff, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2357; [e-mail]