Post Properties, Inc. (
PPS
)
,a real estate investment trust (REIT), recently increased its
quarterly dividend per share from 22 cents to 25 cents. The new
dividend is payable on July 13, 2012 to shareholders of record as
of June 29, 2012.
At the end of first quarter 2012, Post Properties had cash and
cash equivalents of $4.3 million. Post Propertieshas a strong
balance sheet, which provides the financial flexibility to pursue
accretive acquisitions and dividend payouts. This augurs well for
its long-term growth. With the current financial strength, the
company was able to increase the quarterly dividend by more than
13.0%.
During the first quarter of 2012, FFO (funds from operations)
stood at $34.2 million or 64 cents per share, compared with $18.3
million or 37 cents per share in the year-earlier quarter. Fund
from operations, a widely used metric to gauge the performance of
REITs, is obtained after adding depreciation and amortization and
other non-cash expenses to net income.
At the end of first quarter 2012, the company had no outstanding
borrowings and had letters of credit totaling $0.6 million under
its combined $330 million unsecured lines of credit. The company
also had available future borrowing capacity of $200 million under
its unsecured bank term loan.
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Post Properties is a
developer and operator of upscale multifamily communities. The
company's mission is to deliver superior satisfaction and value to
its residents with a vision of being the first choice in quality
multifamily living. The company focuses on developing and managing
Post branded resort-style garden and high density urban
apartments.
Post Properties currently retains a Zacks #2 Rank, which
translates into a short-term Buy rating. We are also maintaining
our long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock. One of its
competitors,
Equity Residential
(
EQR
) holds a Zacks #3 Rank, implying a short-term Hold rating.
EQUITY RESIDENT (EQR): Free Stock Analysis
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EQUITY RESIDENT (EQR): Free Stock Analysis
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POST PPTYS INC (PPS): Free Stock Analysis
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