Submitted by knielsen on Wed, 02/08/2023 - 21:23

First Industrial Realty Trust Reports Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2022 Results

  • Year-End Occupancy of 98.8% and Full Year Cash Same Store NOI Growth of 10.1%, Both Company Records
  • Cash Rental Rates Up 26.7% in 2022, Highest Annual Increase in Company History
  • Cash Rental Rate Increase of 33% on Leases Signed To Date Commencing in 2023
  • Started a Million Square-Foot Development in Northern California, Estimated Investment of $126 Million
  • Placed In Service 4.1 Million Square Feet of Developments in 2022; 100% Leased, Estimated Total Investment of $448 Million, Cash Yield of 6.6%
  • Sold One Property for $54 Million in the Fourth Quarter; $178 Million Sold in 2022
  • Increased First Quarter 2023 Dividend to $0.32 Per Share, an 8.5% Increase

First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: FR), a leading fully integrated owner, operator and developer of industrial real estate, today announced results for the fourth quarter and full year 2022. First Industrial's diluted net income available to common stockholders per share (EPS) was $0.62 in the fourth quarter, compared to $0.87 a year ago. Full year 2022 EPS was $2.72, compared to $2.09 in 2021.

First Industrial's fourth quarter FFO was $0.60 per share/unit on a diluted basis, compared to $0.52 per share/unit a year ago. Full year 2022 FFO was $2.28 per share/unit on a diluted basis versus $1.97 per share/unit in 2021. Excluding the income related to insurance claim settlements, fourth quarter and full year 2022 FFO was $0.59 and $2.27 per share/unit, respectively.

“2022 was an outstanding year for First Industrial due to the contributions of our entire team as reflected in our strong performance,” said Peter E. Baccile, First Industrial's president and chief executive officer. “We established new company highs for year-end occupancy and cash rental rate growth, which contributed to record annual cash same store NOI growth. We are well positioned to capture additional rent growth in our portfolio, demonstrated by the 33% growth in cash rental rates on signed leases commencing in 2023.”

Portfolio Performance

  • In service occupancy was 98.8% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2022, compared to 98.3% at the end of the third quarter of 2022, and 98.1% at the end of the fourth quarter of 2021.
  • In the fourth quarter, cash rental rates increased 41.1%. For the full year, cash rental rates increased 26.7%, which is the highest annual increase in company history.
  • The Company has achieved a cash rental rate increase of approximately 33% on leases signed to date commencing in 2023 reflecting 50% of 2023 rollovers.
  • In the fourth quarter, cash basis same store net operating income before termination fees and the income related to insurance claim settlements (“SS NOI”) increased 7.6% reflecting higher average occupancy, increases in rental rates on new and renewal leasing and contractual rent escalations, slightly offset by higher free rent. For the full year, calculated under the same methodology, SS NOI increased 10.1% which is a company record.

Development Leasing

During the fourth quarter, the Company:

  • Leased the remaining 66,000 square feet at the 133,000 square-foot First Park Miami Building 9 in South Florida.
  • Leased 100% of the 72,000 square-foot First Loop Logistics Park Building 1 in Central Florida. The lease is expected to commence upon completion in the first quarter of 2023.
  • Leased 54,000 square feet at its 81,000 square-foot First Loop Logistics Park Building 2 in Central Florida. The lease is expected to commence upon completion in the first quarter of 2023.

Investment and Disposition Activities

In the fourth quarter, the Company:

  • Commenced development of First Stockton Logistics Center in Northern California - 1.0 million square feet; $126 million estimated investment
  • Acquired two sites totaling 55 acres in the Philadelphia and Houston markets for $17 million.
  • Acquired a 47,000 square-foot building in the Inland Empire for $15 million.
  • Sold a 581,000 square-foot building in Minneapolis for $54 million.

For the full year 2022, the Company:

  • Placed in service ten developments, 100% leased, totaling 4.1 million square feet, with an estimated total investment of $448 million and a cash yield of 6.6%.
  • Acquired 13 sites totaling 134 acres for a total of $162 million that can support approximately 2.0 million square feet of development.
  • Acquired 11 buildings totaling 487,000 square feet for a total of $137 million.
  • Sold nine buildings comprised of 2.2 million square feet and one land parcel for $178 million; exited the Cleveland market.
  • Sold 391 acres at its Camelback 303 business park joint venture in Phoenix; First Industrial's share of the gain and promote before tax is $102 million.

“Through our development efforts in 2022, we placed in service more than four million square feet of premier logistics space, all 100% leased, deploying $448 million in capital,” said Johannson Yap, First Industrial's chief investment officer. “Our team is focused on building upon our excellent development track record of value creation through lease-up within our current pipeline.”

Capital

On November 1, 2022, the Company:

  • Borrowed the entire $300 million of the delayed draw unsecured term loan that closed in August.

In the fourth quarter, the Company:

  • Entered into interest rate swaps to effectively fix the all-in interest rate on the entire $300 million unsecured term loan at 4.88%. The new fixed rate became effective on December 1, 2022.

Common Stock Dividend Increased

The board of directors declared a common dividend of $0.32 per share/unit for the quarter ending March 31, 2023 payable on April 17, 2023 to stockholders of record on March 31, 2023. The new dividend rate represents an 8.5% increase from the prior rate of $0.295 per share/unit. This represents a payout ratio of approximately 70% for our anticipated 2023 Adjusted Funds from Operations (AFFO) as defined in our supplemental information report.

Outlook for 2023

“Industrial real estate fundamentals support further market rent growth, which is benefiting our operating results and our earnings, with higher interest rates a partial offset.” added Mr. Baccile. “While the overall economic picture is evolving, we have positioned our company to perform throughout the cycle with our well-located portfolio and pipeline and our strong balance sheet with no debt maturities for the next few years.”

Outlook for 2023 - 4Q22

The following assumptions were used for guidance:

  • Average quarter-end in service occupancy of 97.75% to 98.75%.
  • SS NOI growth on a cash basis before termination fees of 7.5% to 8.5% for the full year. This range assumes 2023 bad debt expense of $1 million and excludes $1.4 million of income related to insurance claim settlements recognized in 4Q22.
  • Includes the incremental costs expected in 2023 related to the Company’s developments completed and under construction as of December 31, 2022. In total, the Company expects to capitalize $0.08 per share of interest in 2023.
  • General and administrative expense of $34.0 million to $35.0 million.
  • Other than the transactions discussed in this release, guidance does not include the impact of:
    • any future investments or property sales,
    • any future debt repurchases prior to maturity or future debt issuances, or
    • any future equity issuances.

Conference Call

First Industrial will host its fourth quarter and full year 2022 results conference call on Thursday, February 9, 2023 at 10:00 a.m. CST (11:00 a.m. EST). The conference call may be accessed by dialing (877) 870-4263, passcode "First Industrial". The conference call will also be webcast live on the Investors page of the Company’s website at www.firstindustrial.com. The replay will also be available on the website.

The Company’s fourth quarter and full year 2022 supplemental information can be viewed at www.firstindustrial.com under the “Investors” tab. 

FFO Definition

In accordance with the NAREIT definition of FFO, First Industrial calculates FFO to be equal to net income available to First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc.'s common stockholders and participating securities, plus depreciation and other amortization of real estate, plus impairment of real estate, minus gain or plus loss on sale of real estate, net of any income tax provision or benefit associated with the sale of real estate. First Industrial also excludes the same adjustments from its share of net income from unconsolidated joint ventures.

About First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc.

First Industrial Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE: FR) is a leading fully integrated owner, operator, and developer of industrial real estate with a track record of providing industry-leading customer service to multinational corporations and regional customers. Across major markets in the United States, our local market experts manage, lease, buy, (re)develop, and sell bulk and regional distribution centers, light industrial, and other industrial facility types. In total, we own and have under development approximately 68.9 million square feet of industrial space as of December 31, 2022. For more information, please visit us at www.firstindustrial.com.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release and the presentation to which it refers may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. We intend for such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on certain assumptions and describe our future plans, strategies and expectations, and are generally identifiable by use of the words "believe," "expect," "plan," "intend," "anticipate," "estimate," "project," "seek," "target," "potential," "focus," "may," "will," "should" or similar words. Although we believe the expectations reflected in forward-looking statements are based upon reasonable assumptions, we can give no assurance that our expectations will be attained or that results will not materially differ. Factors which could have a materially adverse effect on our operations and future prospects include, but are not limited to: changes in national, international, regional and local economic conditions generally and real estate markets specifically; changes in legislation/regulation (including changes to laws governing the taxation of real estate investment trusts) and actions of regulatory authorities; the uncertainty and economic impact of pandemics, epidemics or other public health emergencies or fear of such events, such as the outbreak of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19); our ability to qualify and maintain our status as a real estate investment trust; the availability and attractiveness of financing (including both public and private capital) and changes in interest rates; the availability and attractiveness of terms of additional debt repurchases; our ability to retain our credit agency ratings; our ability to comply with applicable financial covenants; our competitive environment; changes in supply, demand and valuation of industrial properties and land in our current and potential market areas; our ability to identify, acquire, develop and/or manage properties on favorable terms; our ability to dispose of properties on favorable terms; our ability to manage the integration of properties we acquire; potential liability relating to environmental matters; defaults on or non-renewal of leases by our tenants; decreased rental rates or increased vacancy rates; higher-than-expected real estate construction costs and delays in development or lease-up schedules; potential natural disasters and other potentially catastrophic events such as acts of war and/or terrorism; technological developments, particularly those affecting supply chains and logistics; litigation, including costs associated with prosecuting or defending claims and any adverse outcomes; risks associated with our investments in joint ventures, including our lack of sole decision-making authority; and other risks and uncertainties described under the heading "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2021, as well as those risks and uncertainties discussed from time to time in our other Exchange Act reports and in our other public filings with the SEC. We caution you not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which reflect our outlook only and speak only as of the date of this press release or the dates indicated in the statements. We assume no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking statements. For further information on these and other factors that could impact us and the statements contained herein, reference should be made to our filings with the SEC.

A schedule of selected financial information can be found on the PDF link below. 

Contact:           Art Harmon, Vice President, Investor Relations and Marketing - (312) 344-4320

 

 

 

 

DOWNLOAD PDF Return to News