Zacks_Analysts' Blog : DCT Industrial Leases in California - Analyst Blog

DCT Industrial Trust Inc (DCT) recently announced that it has leased a 505,000 square foot property named Building 1 at Southern California Logistics Airport (SCLA) in the Inland Empire submarket of Southern California.

In May 2011, the company signed a ten-year lease for Building 1, which spans 495,000 square feet with a Fortune 100 manufacturing company.  Both the tenants of Building 1 are expected to occupy the building by the fourth quarter of 2011. The concerned property is currently 94.2% leased and the completion of these two lease contracts will bring the overall project in SCLA to approximately  2,000,000 square feet of space in five state-of-the-art facilities.

Despite the challenging economic environment, the company has been able to execute strong leases with tenants in southern California. DCT Industrial’s southern California portfolio is currently 97.5% leased spanning 5.8 million square feet.

DCT Industrial is a leading industrial real estate company that owns, operates and develops high-quality bulk distribution and light industrial properties in high-volume distribution markets in the U.S. and Mexico. 

As of June 30, 2011, the company owned interests in, managed or had under development approximately 77.8 million square feet of properties, which have been leased to more than 860 customers, including 14.6 million square feet managed on behalf of three institutional joint venture partners.

DCT Industrial currently retains a Zacks #3 Rank, which translates into a short-term Hold rating. We are also maintaining our long-term Neutral recommendation on the stock. One of its competitors, Duke Realty Corp (DRE) also holds a Zacks #3 Rank.