Duke Realty Ltd Prtnrshp/Duke Realty Invstmts S&POutlk Pos.NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Standard & Poor's CreditWire 6/13/97-- Standard & Poor's today has revised its outlook on Duke Realty realty n. a short form of "real estate." (See: real estate) REALTY. An abstract of real, as distinguished from personalty. Realty relates to lands and tenements, rents or other hereditaments. Vide Real Property. Investments Inc. to positive from stable. At the same time, Standard & Poor's has affirmed its triple-'B'-minus rating on Duke Realty Investments' $75 million cumulative redeemable preferred stock Stock shares that have preferential rights to dividends or to amounts distributable on liquidation, or to both, ahead of common shareholders. Preferred stock is given preference over common stock. Holders of preferred stock receive dividends at a fixed annual rate. issue and its triple-'B' rating on $240 million senior unsecured notes due 2000-2005 issued by Duke Realty Limited Partnership (the operating partnership of Duke Realty Investments). (See table below) The corporate credit rating on both Duke Realty Investments and Duke Realty L.P. is triple-'B'. The ratings and outlook acknowledge this Indianapolis, Ind.-based REIT's solid market position and continued strengthening financial risk profile, which combine to somewhat offset its geographic concentration and development risk. Duke Realty Investments is one of the largest commercial real estate companies in the Midwest. With close to a $2 billion market capitalization Market Capitalization A measure of a public company's size. Market capitalization is the total dollar value of all outstanding shares. It's calculated by multiplying the number of shares times the current market price. This term is often referred to as market cap. , this fully-integrated REIT REIT See: Real Estate Investment Trust REIT See real estate investment trust (REIT). maintains interests in 285 industrial, office, and retail properties encompassing about 34.3 million square feet (95% occupied) and manages an additional 8.1 million square feet for third-party owners. The trust's portfolio continues to perform well, as occupancies have remained strong and the trends for net effective rent continue to appear positive. Duke Realty Investments' dominance in its primary Midwest markets (Indianapolis, Ind. and Cincinnati and Columbus, Ohio Columbus is the capital and the largest city of the American state of Ohio. Named for explorer Christopher Columbus, the city was founded in 1812 at the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers, and assumed the functions of state capital in 1816. ) and its large landholdings within some established office/industrial parks, provide it with a distinct competitive advantage in meeting tenant demands. However, this also makes the trust heavily reliant upon certain, albeit relatively stable, economies. The financial position continues to improve and remains strong for the rating category. The dividend payout ratio Dividend Payout Ratio The percentage of earnings paid to shareholders in dividends. Calculated as: has been reduced to a more conservative 66%, and the capital structure is conservatively leveraged at under 40% debt-to-book capitalization. The company's debt profile consists mainly of fixed rate debt with a weighted average debt maturity of approximately 6.5 years. Debt service coverage is strong for the rating category at 3.5 times (x) and fixed charge coverage (including preferred dividends preferred dividend n. a payment of a corporation's profits to holders of preferred shares of stock. (See: preferred stock) ) remains solid at just under 3.0x. The trust's financial flexibility continues to improve as unencumbered Unencumbered Property that is not subject to any creditor claims or liens. Notes: For example, if a house is owned free and clear (meaning the owner owes no mortgage to anyone), it is unencumbered. properties now represent about 70% of the trust's cash flow, which is up from about 55% a year ago. Further, Duke Realty Investments maintains access to a largely unused and attractively priced $150 million unsecured bank revolver. OUTLOOK: Positive. Duke Realty Investments' strong track record within its target markets, the relative stability of these markets, and the trust's limited exposure to any individual asset or tenant (less than 2.6% and 1.8% respectively, of net operating income Operating Income The profit realized from a business' own operations. Notes: This would not include income from things such as investments in other firms. Also referred to as operating profit or recurring profit. ) combine to help offset the trust's geographic concentration risk. Future ratings improvement will depend upon continued discipline regarding development, particularly with regard to speculative activities; ongoing conservative approach to entering new markets; and maintenance of a conservative financial risk profile, Standard & Poor's said. -- CreditWire -0- RATINGS AFFIRMED ISSUE RATING Duke Realty Investments Inc. Corporate credit rtg BBB $75 mil cumulative redeemable pfd stk BBB- Duke Realty Limited Partnership Corporate credit rtg BBB $40 mil 7.28% senior unsecd notes due 2000 BBB $50 mil 7.25% senior unsecd notes due 2002 BBB $50 mil 7.14% senior unsecd notes due 2004 BBB $100 mil 7 3/8% senior unsecd notes due 2005 BBB CONTACT: Jeanne M Sarda, New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of (1) 212-208-1289 Elizabeth Campbell Elizabeth Pfohl Campbell (December 2, 1902 - January 9, 2004) is one of the first and most prominent public television pioneers in the United States. Campbell also served as a teacher, college administrator, as a notable school board member for Arlington Public Schools, and as the , New York (1) 212-208-8807 |
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