Realty Income Sets Records

ESCONDIDO, CA-Realty Income, a specialist in net-leased retail properties that has been buying heavily in recent years, posted record fourth-quarter and year-end results Thursday as the company reported spending nearly $770 million to acquire 378 properties in 2006. The acquisitions contributed to the record results, but company officials cautioned that investors cannot assume that it will continue to buy at this rate.

Tom Lewis, CEO, noted that the increases in property acquisitions “allowed us to raise the dividend again in the fourth quarter,” and the property acquisitions “substantially exceeded our expectations during the fourth quarter and for 2006.” However, Lewis said, Realty Income will continue to maintain its due diligence and underwriting standards in buying new properties.

Lewis and other Realty Income executives discussed the financial results in a conference call Feb. 15, in which they reported that the company’s FFO for the quarter ended Dec. 31, 2006 grew 25.1% to $44.9 million, while FFO per diluted common share increased 7% to $0.46 per share. The FFO came on revenue that increased 29.2% to $69.1 million as the company’s portfolio occupancy increased to 98.7% and same store rents increased 1.1% to $44.5 million.