PREIT Exec Unhappy With Stock Valuation

PHILADELPHIA-The range at which Pennsylvania Real Estate Investment Trust’s stock has traded lately is undervalued compared to the worth of the company’s assets, said Ronald Rubin, the company’s chairman and chief executive officer, during the REIT’s second-quarter conference call. Just minutes after his comments, PREIT was trading at around $11.40 per share, down from a 52-week high of $37.68.

Whatever the case, Rubin’s company is not alone, given that most retail REITs have seen dramatic dips in their share prices since the credit crunch went into full swing a few months ago. The message from retailers has been as bleak as the message from Wall Street, Rubin observed. “We have seen a level of concern as the year has progressed,” he said.

On the store-closure front, PREIT has fared relatively well so far, executives said. Of the 56 assets in its portfolio, only three had Linens ‘n Things, which is shutting down. They don’t expect any of the eight Boscov’s in the portfolio or two under development in centers to close, though that retailer is going through bankruptcy. Former Value City stores, another chain shutting down, are getting replaced by Burlington Coat Factory units.