Another loss for Maguire
Los Angeles office landlord Maguire Properties Inc. reported its fourth consecutive quarterly loss Monday amid a softening commercial real estate market.
The owner of premier office buildings in downtown Los Angeles, Orange County and San Diego lost $72.5 million, or $1.74 a share, in the third quarter.
Maguire changed leadership in May. Founder Robert Maguire left the firm, though he is still its largest shareholder, and former Catellus Development Corp. head Nelson Rising became chief executive.
“If anyone can save this company it is Nelson Rising,” said analyst Craig Silvers. “The problems he’s working against are the slow economy and a mountain of debt.”
The company’s challenge is “to survive until the economy gets better,” Silvers said.
Maguire -- a real estate investment trust, or REIT -- owns or has interests in 36 office buildings. It also owns the Westin hotel in Pasadena and several parking lots.
Its funds from operations, a key measure, fell to a deficit of $20.2 million, or 42 cents a share, for the quarter, compared with a deficit of $2.7 million, or 6 cents, a year earlier.
The company’s shares closed at $3 on Monday, down 51 cents. The stock was trading above $30 just 10 months ago.
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