The net profit of Azrieli Group Ltd. (TASE: AZRG) was halved in 2011, despite higher revenue, but the company will distribute a dividend of NIS 197.9 million.
Net operating income (NOI) rose 11% to NIS 982 million in 2010 from NIS 882 million in 2010, while same property NOI, excluding the acquisition of Three Galleria Office Buildings LLC in Houston and the opening of malls in Acre and Kiryat Ata, rose 14%. Funds from operations (FFO) rose 12% to NIS 668 million in 2011 from NIS 596 million in 2010.
Net profit was halved to NIS 623 million in 2011 from NIS 1.26 billion in 2010, due to a NIS 601 million tax provision, because of higher taxes introduced on the basis of the Trajtenberg Report. Azrieli also reported a NIS 439 million loss on its investment in Bank Leumi (TASE: LUMI), due to the fall in the bank's share price during 2011.
Azrieli Group chairman David Azrieli said, "I believe in the Israeli economy in the present and future. Therefore, the company is developing income-producing real estate projects in Israel at an unprecedented rate.
Azrieli Group CEO Shlomo Sherf added, "We continue to show strong growth in our core businesses and improve our performance from one quarter to the next. At the same time, we're undergoing an unprecedented development boom amounting to NIS 3.2 billion, which will greatly expand our real estate business, and increase our income-producing real estate space by 60%."
In addition to Azrieli Group's core income-producing real estate business and its stakes in Bank Leumi and its credit card subsidiary Leumi Card Ltd., it has extensive manufacturing, fuel and desalination operations in Israel through Granite Hacarmel Investments Ltd. (TASE: GRNT).
Azrieli Group's share price fell 0.5% in morning trading today to NIS 87.48, giving a market cap of NIS 10.6 billion.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on March 22, 2012
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