INDIANAPOLIS, July 30, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Kite Realty Group Trust (NYSE:KRG), a premier owner and operator of high-quality, open-air grocery-anchored centers and vibrant mixed-use assets, reported today its operating results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024. For the quarters ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, net loss attributable to common shareholders was $48.6 million, or $0.22 per diluted share, compared to net income of $32.1 million, or $0.15 per diluted share, respectively. For the six months ended June 30, 2024 and 2023, net loss attributable to common shareholders was $34.5 million, or $0.16 per diluted share, compared to net income of $37.4 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, respectively. The net loss for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2024 was driven by a $66.2 million impairment charge associated with an asset classified as held for sale as of June 30, 2024. Excluding the impairment charge, net income for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2024 would have been $17.6 million, or $0.08 per diluted share, and $31.7 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, respectively.    Company raises 2024 NAREIT FFO and Same Property NOI guidance   Leased approximately 1.2 million square feet at 15.6% comparable blended cash leasing spreads   Received a credit rating upgrade to BBB from S&P Ratings   Improved Net Debt to Adjusted EBITDA to 4.8x, an all-time low for KRG   Board of Trustees raises quarterly dividend on common shares by 8.3% on a year-over-year basis "The KRG team delivered another exceptional quarter with approximately 1.2 million square feet of total leasing volume, while generating 15.6% blended cash spreads," said John A. Kite, Chairman and CEO. "The combination of our superior operating platform and premier open-air portfolio has enabled our team to enhance the quality of our merchandising mix and drive higher embedded rent bumps. S&P and Moody's recent upgrades reflect the strength of our credit metrics and our commitment to maintaining a formidable balance sheet." Second Quarter 2024 Financial and Operational Results Generated NAREIT FFO of the Operating Partnership of $117.5 million, or $0.53 per diluted share, for the second quarter and $230.3 million, or $1.03 per diluted share, year to date. Same Property NOI increased by 1.8% for the second quarter and increased by 2.2% year to date. Executed 160 new and renewal leases representing approximately 1.2 million square feet. Blended cash leasing spreads of 15.6% on 136 comparable leases, including 34.8% on 40 comparable new leases, 14.3% on 60 comparable non-option renewals and 6.0% on 36 comparable option renewals. Cash leasing spreads of 23.7% on a blended basis for comparable new and non-option renewal leases. Operating retail portfolio ABR per square foot of $20.90 at June 30, 2024, a 3.5% increase year-over-year. Retail portfolio leased percentage of 94.8% at June 30, 2024, an 80-basis point increase sequentially. Portfolio leased-to-occupied spread at period end of 320 basis points, which represents $35.3 million of signed-not-open NOI. Second Quarter 2024 Capital Allocation Activity Sold Ashland & Roosevelt (Chicago, IL), a 104,176 square foot center, for $30.6 million. Second Quarter 2024 Balance Sheet Overview As of June 30, 2024, the Company's net debt to Adjusted EBITDA was 4.8x. Repaid the $149.6 million principal balance of the 4.58% senior unsecured notes that matured on June 30, 2024. Subsequent to quarter end, repaid the $120.0 million principal balance of the 2.68% unsecured term loan that matured on July 17, 2024, with a portion of the proceeds from the Company's $350.0 million of senior unsecured notes issued in January 2024. The Company has no debt maturing for the remainder of 2024. S&P Ratings upgraded the Company's corporate credit rating to BBB from BBB- with a stable rating outlook. DividendOn July 29, 2024, the Company's Board of Trustees declared a third quarter 2024 dividend of $0.26 per common share, which represents an 8.3% year-over-year increase. The third quarter dividend will be paid on or about October 16, 2024, to shareholders of record as of October 9, 2024. 2024 Earnings GuidanceThe Company now expects to generate net income attributable to common shareholders of $0.00 to $0.04 per diluted share in 2024. The Company is updating its 2024 NAREIT FFO guidance range to $2.04 to $2.08 per diluted share from $2.02 to $2.08 per diluted share, based, in part, on the following assumptions: 2024 Same Property NOI range of 2.0% to 3.0%, which represents a 50-basis point increase at the midpoint. Full-year bad debt assumption of 0.5% to 1.0% of total revenues, which represents a 5-basis point decrease at the midpoint. The following table reconciles the Company's 2024 net income guidance range to the Company's 2024 NAREIT FFO guidance range:     Low High Net income   $ 0.00   $ 0.04   Depreciation and amortization     1.74     1.74   Realized loss on sales of operating properties, net     0.01     0.01   Realized gain on sale of unconsolidated property, net     (0.01 )   (0.01 ) Impairment charges     0.30     0.30   NAREIT FFO   $ 2.04   $ 2.08   Earnings Conference Call Kite Realty Group Trust will conduct a conference call to discuss its financial results on Wednesday, July 31, 2024, at 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time. A live webcast of the conference call will be available on KRG's website at www.kiterealty.com or at the following link: KRG Second Quarter 2024 Webcast. The dial-in registration link is: KRG Second Quarter 2024 Teleconference Registration. In addition, a webcast replay link will be available on KRG's website. About Kite Realty Group Trust Kite Realty Group Trust (NYSE:KRG) is a real estate investment trust (REIT) headquartered in Indianapolis, IN that is one of the largest publicly traded owners and operators of open-air shopping centers and mixed-use assets. The Company's primarily grocery-anchored portfolio is located in high-growth Sun Belt and select strategic gateway markets. The combination of necessity-based grocery-anchored neighborhood and community centers, along with vibrant mixed-use assets makes the KRG portfolio an ideal mix for both retailers and consumers. Publicly listed since 2004, KRG has over 60 years of experience in developing, constructing and operating real estate. Using operational, investment, development, and redevelopment expertise, KRG continuously optimizes its portfolio to maximize value and return to shareholders. As of June 30, 2024, the Company owned interests in 178 U.S. open-air shopping centers and mixed-use assets, comprising approximately 27.6 million square feet of gross leasable space. For more information, please visit kiterealty.com. Connect with KRG: LinkedIn | Twitter | Instagram | Facebook Safe Harbor This release, together with other statements and information publicly disseminated by us, contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 (the "Securities Act") and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Such statements are based on assumptions and expectations that may not be realized and are inherently subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, many of which cannot be predicted with accuracy and some of which might not even be anticipated. Future events and actual results, performance, transactions or achievements, financial or otherwise, may differ materially from the results, performance, transactions or achievements, financial or otherwise, expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Risks, uncertainties and other factors that might cause such differences, some of which could be material, include but are not limited to: economic, business, banking, real estate and other market conditions, particularly in connection with low or negative growth in the U.S. economy as well as economic uncertainty (including a potential economic slowdown or recession, rising interest rates, inflation, unemployment, or limited growth in consumer income or spending); financing risks, including the availability of, and costs associated with, sources of liquidity; the Company's ability to refinance, or extend the maturity dates of, the Company's indebtedness; the level and volatility of interest rates; the financial stability of the Company's tenants; the competitive environment in which the Company operates, including potential oversupplies of, or a reduction in demand for rental space; acquisition, disposition, development and joint venture risks; property ownership and management risks, including the relative illiquidity of real estate investments, and expenses, vacancies or the inability to rent space on favorable terms or at all; the Company's ability to maintain the Company's status as a real estate investment trust for U.S. federal income tax purposes; potential environmental and other liabilities; impairment in the value of real estate property the Company owns; the attractiveness of our properties to tenants, the actual and perceived impact of e-commerce on the value of shopping center assets and changing demographics and customer traffic patterns; business continuity disruptions and a deterioration in our tenants' ability to operate in affected areas or delays in the supply of products or services to us or our tenants from vendors that are needed to operate efficiently, causing costs to rise sharply and inventory to fall; risks related to our current geographical concentration of the Company's properties in the states of Texas, Florida, and North Carolina and the metropolitan statistical areas of New York, Atlanta, Seattle, Chicago, and Washington, D.C.; civil unrest, acts of violence, terrorism or war, acts of God, climate change, epidemics, pandemics, natural disasters and severe weather conditions, including such events that may result in underinsured or uninsured losses or other increased costs and expenses; changes in laws and government regulations including governmental orders affecting the use of the Company's properties or the ability of its tenants to operate, and the costs of complying with such changed laws and government regulations; possible short-term or long-term changes in consumer behavior due to COVID-19 and the fear of future pandemics; our ability to satisfy environmental, social or governance standards set by various constituencies; insurance costs and coverage, especially in Florida and Texas coastal areas; risks associated with cybersecurity attacks and the loss of confidential information and other business disruptions; other factors affecting the real estate industry generally; and other risks identified in reports the Company files with the Securities and Exchange Commission or in other documents that it publicly disseminates, including, in particular, the section titled "Risk Factors" in the Company's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2023, and in the Company's quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. This Earnings Release also includes certain forward-looking non-GAAP information. These non-GAAP financial measures should be considered along with, but not as alternatives to, net income (loss) as a measure of our operating performance. Please see the following pages for the corresponding definitions and reconciliations of such non-GAAP financial measures. Kite Realty Group TrustConsolidated Balance Sheets(dollars in thousands)(unaudited)   June 30,2024   December 31,2023 Assets:       Investment properties, at cost $ 7,546,116     $ 7,740,061   Less: accumulated depreciation   (1,447,549 )     (1,381,770 ) Net investment properties   6,098,567       6,358,291           Cash and cash equivalents   153,835       36,413   Tenant and other receivables, including accrued straight-line rentof $62,035 and $55,482, respectively   120,012       113,290   Restricted cash and escrow deposits   4,935       5,017   Deferred costs, net   263,884       304,171   Short-term deposits   120,000       —   Prepaid and other assets   114,159       117,834   Investments in unconsolidated subsidiaries   9,970       9,062   Assets associated with investment property held for sale   73,558       —   Total assets $ 6,958,920     $ 6,944,078           Liabilities and Equity:       Liabilities:       Mortgage and other indebtedness, net $ 3,015,626     $ 2,829,202   Accounts payable and accrued expenses   189,688       198,079   Deferred revenue and other liabilities   250,103       272,942   Liabilities associated with investment property held for sale   3,930       —   Total liabilities   3,459,347       3,300,223           Commitments and contingencies       Limited Partners' interests in the Operating Partnership   76,093       73,287           Equity:       Common shares, $0.01 par value, 490,000,000 shares authorized,219,654,953 and 219,448,429 shares issued and outstanding atJune 30, 2024 and December 31, 2023, respectively   2,197       2,194   Additional paid-in capital   4,886,532       4,886,592   Accumulated other comprehensive income   50,255       52,435   Accumulated deficit   (1,517,383 )     (1,373,083 ) Total shareholders' equity   3,421,601       3,568,138   Noncontrolling interests   1,879       2,430   Total equity   3,423,480       3,570,568   Total liabilities and equity $ 6,958,920     $ 6,944,078   Kite Realty Group TrustConsolidated Statements of Operations(dollars in thousands, except per share amounts)(unaudited)   Three Months Ended June 30,   Six Months Ended June 30,     2024       2023       2024       2023   Revenue:               Rental income $ 205,836     $ 205,836     $ 411,649     $ 408,899   Other property-related revenue   3,146       1,883       4,457       3,799   Fee income   3,452       1,040       3,767       2,811   Total revenue   212,434       208,759       419,873       415,509                   Expenses:               Property operating   28,564       27,232       56,645       54,546   Real estate taxes   26,493       26,697       53,027       53,880   General, administrative and other   12,966