Equity One Grows FFO 17.2% in Q3

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NORTH MIAMI BEACH-Equity One Inc., a large shopping center owner, developer and operator based here, had a 17.2% increase in funds from operations and a 78% rise in net income for the third quarter, compared with the same quarter last year, company officials report. FFO were $28.1 million in Q3, up from $23.9 million for the same 2003 period, and FFO per diluted share rose 5.4%, or 2 cents, to 39 cents in the most recent quarter.

Net income grew from $17.2 million to $30.7 million, while net income per diluted share rose 59.3% from 27 cents to 43 cents. The company also experienced an increased average occupancy rate in its core shopping center portfolio, from 92.5% at June 30 to 93.8%–a figure Equity One chairman and CEO Chaim Katzman calls strong.