Kimco Realty (KIM +1.81%) ended the week on a high note, with investors snapping up its shares following the release of Q1 of fiscal 2020 earnings on Friday.
The economic slowdown stemming from the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus outbreak affected the results for the retail real estate investment trust (REIT) for the quarter. Its revenue slumped by almost 2% on a year-over-year basis to $289.7 million, while its net income fell by nearly 18% to $83.7 million ($0.19 per share).
On the other hand, funds from operations (FFO) -- considered to be the most relevant profitability metric for REITs -- inched up by 1% to $160.5 million ($0.37) for the period.
Image source: Kimco Realty.
Those figures topped analyst estimates. On average, prognosticators following the stock were looking for $287.8 million on the top line, $0.18 in per-share net profit, and $0.36 per share for FFO.
Kimco, which pulled its full-year 2020 guidance recently, maintained that policy and provided no headline number forecasts for for the period.
It also announced in the earnings release that it's suspending its quarterly common stock dividend, adding that it "will continue to monitor the company's financial performance and economic outlook on a monthly basis and, at a later date, intends to reinstate the common dividend during 2020." Prior to the suspension, Kimco had handed out $0.28 per share, which at the current stock price would yield 10.3%.
Nevertheless, investors were clearly pleased with the company's performance. Kimco stock closed 8.5% higher on Friday, well outpacing the gains of the broader equities market.
