CBRE books Q2 loss on lower revenue

CB Richard Ellis reported a net loss of $6.6 mln (EUR 4.7 mln), or $0.02 per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2009. This compares with net income of $16.6 mln, or $0.08 per diluted share, in the year-earlier period. Revenue fell from $1.3 bn to $955.7 mln.

Despite continued weakness in sales and leasing markets globally, second-quarter 2009 results showed better quarter-over-quarter performance than the quarter-over-quarter performance for the first quarter of 2009. Specifically, the second-quarter 2009 EBITDA margin, excluding one-time charges, was 9.5%, versus 8.7% for the same period in the prior year, despite considerably lower revenue.

'Our second-quarter results were in line with expectations,' said Brett White, president and chief executive officer of CB Richard Ellis. 'Despite the ongoing global economic difficulties, we produced significantly higher normalized EBITDA margins compared with the year-earlier second quarter and once again saw operating expense reductions (29.9%) outpace the decline in revenue (27.3%). This is a direct result of the aggressive actions we began taking more than 18 months ago to lower expense levels to address the current market environment.'

Revenue for the EMEA region, which mainly consists of operations in Europe, was $176.6 mln for the second quarter of 2009, down from $299.7 mln for the second quarter of 2008. The EMEA region reported operating income of $3.4 mln for the second quarter of 2009, compared with $27.2 mln for the same period in 2008. Offsetting the revenue decrease was a 42% reduction in operating expenses, compared to the year-earlier period.