Equity One Sees Big Hike in Net Income, FFO in '03

NORTH MIAMI BEACH, FL-Equity One Inc., a locally based shopping center REIT, saw funds from operations and net income rise significantly last year, according to the company’s fourth-quarter financial report.

After rising 75.8% in the third quarter of 2003, compared with the same quarter in 2002, funds from operations increased 162.4% to $26.3 million in the fourth quarter of last year, compared with $10 million for the same period in 2002. Funds from operations per diluted share for the quarter rose 31% from 29 cents in 2002 to 38 cents last year. Funds from operations are a standard measure of a REIT’s operating performance.

For all of 2003, funds from operations also increased dramatically, 97.6% to $89.9 million from $45.5 million in 2002. The funds per diluted share grew 7.4% to $1.46 last year from $1.36 the year before.