Corporate Office Properties Trust (COPT) (NYSE: OFC), an office real
estate investment trust (REIT) that focuses primarily on serving the
specialized requirements of U.S. Government and Defense Information
Technology tenants, announced today that it sold five buildings in the
White Marsh submarket of Greater Baltimore, MD, for $19.2 million ($18.5
million, net). The White Marsh buildings, which are located in the
Greater Baltimore submarket, totaled approximately 163,000 square feet
and, at December 31, 2011, were 83.2% leased (55 leases). Four of the
five buildings were constructed in the mid-to-late 1980s.
The White Marsh buildings were part of the Strategic Reallocation Plan
(SRP) announced by COPT management in April 2011. Of the $512 million of
operating properties in the SRP, COPT has sold $95.9 million of
buildings and adjacent land containing approximately 1.15 million square
feet, and realized net proceeds of $88.5 million.
COPT also sold a building which was shell-complete in 2010 in San
Antonio, TX, for $15.5 million ($15.1 million, net). The San Antonio
disposition represented an opportunistic sale to an end user. The 95,000
square foot San Antonio building was built by COPT as part of Sentry
Gateway, an office campus that supports a government demand driver in
the San Antonio Northwest submarket. At the time of sale, the building
was vacant.
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Details of the White Marsh & San Antonio Asset Sales
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Address
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Submarket
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Operational SF (000s)
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7939 Honeygo Boulevard
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White Marsh
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28
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8133 Perry Hall Boulevard
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White Marsh
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28
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7923 Honeygo Boulevard
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White Marsh
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23
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8114 Sandpiper Circle
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White Marsh
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46
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8615 Ridgely's Choice Drive
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White Marsh
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38
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Subtotal - White Marsh Properties
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163
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Sentry Gateway 100
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San Antonio NW
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95
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Total Operational Square Feet Sold
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258
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Adjacent land parcel
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San Antonio NW
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4 acres
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"The White Marsh asset sales represent meaningful progress toward
executing our Strategic Reallocation Plan and the sale of our San
Antonio development property validates the desirability and appeal of
our Sentry Gateway campus,” stated Randall M. Griffin, Chief Executive
Officer of COPT.
Conference Call to Discuss 2011 Year-End Results
Management will host a conference call to discuss its 2011 results.
Details for that call are as follows:
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Earnings Release Date:
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Thursday, February 9, 2012 at 8:00 a.m. Eastern Time
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Conference Call Date:
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Thursday, February 9, 2012
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Time:
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11:00 a.m. Eastern Time
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Telephone Number: (within the U.S.)
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888-679-8033
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Telephone Number: (outside the U.S.)
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617-213-4846
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Passcode:
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74128254
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Please use the following link to pre-register and view important
information about this conference call. Pre-registering is not mandatory
but is recommended as it will provide you immediate entry into the call
and will facilitate the timely start of the conference. Pre-registration
only takes a few moments and you may pre-register at anytime, including
up to and after the call start time. To pre-register, please click on
the below link:
https://www.theconferencingservice.com/prereg/key.process?key=PVEJ63YG9
You may also pre-register in the Investor Relations section of the
Company’s website at www.copt.com.
Alternatively, you may be placed into the call by an operator by calling
the number provided above at least 5 to 10 minutes before the start of
the call. A replay of this call will be available beginning Thursday,
February 9 at 2:00 p.m. Eastern Time through Thursday, February 23 at
midnight Eastern Time. To access the replay within the United States,
please call 888-286-8010 and use passcode 81352459. To access the replay
outside the United States, please call 617-801-6888 and use passcode
81352459.
The conference calls will also be available via live webcast in the
Investor Relations section of the Company’s website at www.copt.com.
A replay of the conference calls will be immediately available via
webcast in the Investor Relations section of the Company’s website.
Company Information
COPT is an office REIT that focuses primarily on strategic customer
relationships and specialized tenant requirements in the U.S. Government
and Defense Information Technology sectors and Data Centers serving such
sectors. The Company acquires, develops, manages and leases office and
data center properties that are typically concentrated in large office
parks primarily located adjacent to government demand drivers and/or in
strong markets that we believe possess growth opportunities. As of
September 30, 2011, the Company owned 266 office properties totaling 21.3
million rentable square feet, which includes 20 properties totaling
1.1 million square feet held through joint ventures. The Company’s
portfolio consists primarily of technically sophisticated buildings in
visually appealing settings that are environmentally sensitive,
sustainable and meet unique customer requirements. COPT is an S&P MidCap
400 company and more information can be found at www.copt.com.
Forward-Looking Information
This press release may contain "forward-looking” statements, as
defined in Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of
the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, that are based on the Company’s
current expectations, estimates and projections about future events and
financial trends affecting the Company.
Forward-looking
statements can be identified by the use of words such as "may,” "will,”
"should,” "could,” "believe,” "anticipate,” "expect,” "estimate,” "plan”
or other comparable terminology.
Forward-looking statements are
inherently subject to risks and uncertainties, many of which the Company
cannot predict with accuracy and some of which the Company might not
even anticipate.
Accordingly, the Company can give no assurance
that these expectations, estimates and projections will be achieved.
Future
events and actual results may differ materially from those discussed in
the forward-looking statements.
Important factors that may affect these expectations, estimates, and
projections include, but are not limited to:
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general economic and business conditions, which will, among other
things, affect office property demand and rents, tenant
creditworthiness, interest rates and financing availability;
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adverse changes in the real estate markets including, among other
things, increased competition with other companies;
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the Company’s ability to borrow on favorable terms;
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risks of real estate acquisition and development activities,
including, among other things, risks that development projects may not
be completed on schedule, that tenants may not take occupancy or pay
rent or that development or operating costs may be greater than
anticipated;
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risks of investing through joint venture structures, including
risks that the Company’s joint venture partners may not fulfill their
financial obligations as investors or may take actions that are
inconsistent with the Company’s objectives;
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changes in our plans or views of market economic conditions or
failure to obtain development rights, either of which could result in
recognition of impairment losses;
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our ability to satisfy and operate effectively under Federal income
tax rules relating to real estate investment trusts and partnerships;
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governmental actions and initiatives, including risks associated
with the impact of a government shutdown such as a reduction in rental
revenues or non-renewal of leases;
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the dilutive effect of issuing additional common shares; and
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environmental requirements.
The Company undertakes no obligation to update or supplement any
forward-looking statements. For further information, please refer to the
Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission,
particularly the section entitled "Risk Factors” in Item 1A of the
Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2010.
