Emaar said it had fourth-quarter net profit of 716
million dirhams ($194.94 million) for the quarter ended Dec. 31, up from 274
million dirhams in the prior-year period.
The results beat analysts forecast for average profit of
475.7 million dirhams, according to a Reuters poll.
Emaar, the Gulf's largest listed developer and which has
reported a decline in profits over the past four quarters, said revenue fell 42
percent to 2.24 billion dirhams in the period.
The company booked impairments of 92 million dirhams in
the quarter on provisions against investment in Dubai Bank and deferred or
stalled projects. That was far below the 417-million dirham impairment it took
in the corresponding period in 2010.
Full-year net profit was 1.8 billion dirhams, down 27
percent from 2.45 billion in 2010. Revenues fell 33 percent to 8.1 billion in
2011.
Emaar, which operates the Armani-branded hotels and owns
the mammoth Dubai Mall, said its retail business contributed 2.14 billion
dirhams to annual revenue, up 13 percent from the 2010. The hospitality &
leisure business contributed 1.22 billion dirhams.
The developer's shopping malls, retail, hospitality and
leisure operations accounted for 41 percent of 2011 revenues, compared with 24
percent in 2010 as the firm continued its shift away from the downturn-hit
property market.
"Our strategy for 2012 is to further increase the
share of revenues from global operations and enhance the proportion of profit
from recurring revenue streams, including shopping malls and retail and
hospitality & leisure," Mohamed Alabbar, Emaar's chairman, said in a
statement.
Emaar handed over 350 residential and over 800,000 square
feet of commercial space in Dubai and 604 units in other global markets.
Property prices in Dubai have plunged by about two-third
from its peak in 2008, forcing many developers to abandon projects and
restructure debt. Home prices in Dubai are expected to drop 5 percent in 2012,
a Reuters poll showed last month.
Emaar's shares ended 1.4 percent higher on the Dubai
bourse before the earnings were announced.
Emaar is known to have about 3.75 billion dirhams of debt
maturing within this year, most of which will be in the first half. Last year,
it put up its prized asset, the Dubai Mall, to secure a $1 billion loan as it
looked to refinance the upcoming debt amid difficult funding conditions.
