Higher profit for LV mall owner

General Growth Properties Inc. of Chicago, owner and operator of two major Las Vegas shopping malls, today reported net income of $22.1 million for the quarter ending March 31, up $13.6 million from the year-ago period.

Net income rose 22 cents to 43 cents on a per-share basis. Net income was pushed down $8.7 million in the 1999 quarter by the early retirement of debt.

Funds from operations -- a commonly-used measure of profitability by real estate investment trusts -- rose 31 percent to $72 million, while total revenues increased 32 percent to $257 million.

Overall occupancy at the company's 136 malls was 89 percent, up marginally from the 88.2 percent occupancy rate reported in the year-ago quarter. The company now has 116 million square feet of mall space in operation, with another 3 million square feet currently under construction.

General Growth owns and operates Meadows Mall and Boulevard Mall, both in Las Vegas.

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