Maguire Posts $5.9-Million Profit

Maguire Properties Inc. said Tuesday that it earned a first-quarter profit of $5.9 million, or 14 cents a share, in its third full quarter of operation as a public company.

The Los Angeles real estate investment trust reported first-quarter revenue of $73 million for the period ended March 31. Income from operations, a key measure of profitability for REITs, was $19.4 million, or 46 cents a share, falling 4 cents short of Wall Street estimates.

Year-earlier profit and sales figures aren’t comparable because Maguire overhauled its corporate structure when it went public last summer.

Maguire’s office buildings -- most of which are on Bunker Hill in downtown Los Angeles -- were 91% leased at the end of the quarter, up slightly from 89.9% a year ago and 90.8% last quarter.

That meant Maguire’s vacancy rate was still in the single digits, easily beating the average downtown office vacancy, which edged down last quarter to 18.3%, according to real estate brokerage Cushman & Wakefield.

A REIT allows individual investors to participate in large real estate ventures. Unlike other public companies, REITs must distribute 90% of their income to shareholders.

Last quarter Maguire completed its $260-million acquisition of Park Place, a 1.7-million-square-foot office park on 15 acres in Irvine. It also signed a lease renewal and expansion for 46,000 square feet with law firm Brown Winfield at One California Plaza in downtown Los Angeles.

Maguire shares fell 14 cents to $23.50 on the New York Stock Exchange. The company released results after the market closed.