Wereldhave Swings To Profit As Property Valuations Improve

Dutch real estate company Wereldhave NV (WHA.AE) said Thursday it swung to a net profit in the first nine months of 2010 due to acquisitions and improved property valuations, and expects higher earnings for the full year.

"The cautious optimism in Europe and the U.S. that gained strength during the year can also be noticed in the markets where Wereldhave is active. In most office markets leasing activity has increased, although the pace of decision-taking is still rather slow," said Wereldhave Chief Executive Hand Pars.

For the first nine months of 2010 Wereldhave posted net profit of EUR78.6 million, from a net loss of EUR106.5 million in the same period last year.

The company's direct result--a measure which excludes changes in the value of real-estate assets, used by property companies to track operational performance--rose to EUR87.6 million from EUR85.8 million a year ago, partly due to a higher gross rental income. The company said it expects an increase in its direct result per share for 2010.

The CEO said there is still a lot of interest from retailers that do not yet have a shop in one of its Dutch, Belgian or Finnish shopping centers, which boosted its direct result.

The indirect result, which includes property valuations, narrowed to a loss of EUR9 million, from a loss of EUR192.3 million in the period a year ago following improved valuations results.

-By Anna Marij van der Meulen; Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]