Beni Stabili's net result hit by write-downs in 2011

Beni Stabili, Italy's largest listed property group, saw net income decline by 76% in 2011 as a result of a combination of write-downs and lower capital gains.

The Milan-listed real estate investment trust, which is majority owned by French office giant Foncière des Régions, posted net income of EUR 18.8 mln in 2011 compared with EUR 78.8 mln a year before. Write-downs of EUR 80 mln were only partially offset by an increase in operating activity and a reduction in taxes due to the conversion to REIT status.

Beni Stabili's EPRA net asset value per share dropped by 3.7% to EUR 1.15 in 2011 from EUR 1.19 a year before.

The company, which owns EUR 3.8 bn worth of assets concentrated in the Milan and Rome areas, said it is committing as little as EUR 50 mln to its development pipeline in 2012-2013, while all of its non pre-let projects have been put on hold. Beni Stabili's development portfolio represents 7% of its total assets, or EUR 306 mln.

Beni Stabili saw its loan to value increase modestly in 2011, to 51.4% from 48.2% in 2010. The company has roughly EUR 353 mln to refinance in 2012, a large part of which is linked to the Intesa/Prada portfolio with debt maturing in December 2012. The company said it is in advanced negotiations with a pool of lenders to secure a new EUR 300 mln financing facility. The company's average cost of debt rose sharply to 4.58% in 2011, from 4.19% in 2010.