DENVER, Aug. 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- DCT Industrial Trust Inc. (NYSE: DCT), a leading industrial real estate investment trust, today announced financial results for the quarter and six months ended June 30, 2008.

Funds from operations (FFO) attributable to common stockholders totaled $32.3 million for the second quarter of 2008 and $62.6 million for the six months ended June 30, 2008. FFO was $0.16 per diluted share for the second quarter of 2008 and $0.30 per diluted share for the six months ended June 30, 2008, compared to $0.19 per diluted share and $0.36 per diluted share reported for the same periods in 2007.

Net income attributable to common stockholders for the second quarter of 2008 was $15.5 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, compared to $7.8 million, or $0.05 per diluted share, reported for the second quarter of 2007. Net income for the six months ended June 30, 2008 was $15.9 million, or $0.09 per diluted share, compared to net income of $23.2 million, or $0.14 per diluted share, for the six months ended June 30, 2007.

Second quarter 2008 net income includes $16.7 million of gains and a $1.2 million impairment charge related to the contribution or sale of real estate. While second quarter FFO did not include any real estate gains, it was reduced by the impairment charge. Second quarter 2007 net income included $9.1 million of gains on the contribution or sale of real estate, of which $9.0 million was included in FFO.

'While our leasing activity and rental rate growth remain steady and in-line with expectations, our caution for the remainder of 2008 has increased,' said Phil Hawkins, Chief Executive Officer of DCT Industrial Trust. 'We've taken additional steps to further strengthen our balance sheet this year, including extending the maturity on $175 million of an unsecured note by five years and closing a $300 million senior unsecured term loan, both with very favorable terms, and disposing of $89 million of low-growth, non-strategic assets. We remain confident that our financial flexibility will benefit us through this softer economic environment, and we will continue to focus on executing our business plan to build long-term value.'

Operating Portfolio

As of June 30, 2008, the Company owned 378 consolidated operating properties, or 53.0 million square feet, compared to 363 consolidated operating properties, or 52.5 million square feet, as of June 30, 2007. Net operating income was $46.5 million in the second quarter of 2008, compared to $45.7 million reported for the second quarter of 2007. DCT's consolidated operating portfolio occupancy declined to 91.8% as of June 30, 2008, compared to 92.8% as of June 30, 2007, primarily due to the bankruptcy of Wickes Furniture. Including an additional 13.0 million square feet of operating properties held in joint ventures, occupancy as of June 30, 2008 was 93.3%, compared to 93.6% a year ago.

Same store net operating income increased 1.3% on a cash basis and 0.3% on a GAAP basis in the second quarter of 2008, when compared to the same period last year. Occupancy of same store properties was 92.3% as of June 30, 2008, compared to 93.1% as of June 30, 2007.

Leasing activity increased with 2.5 million square feet of leases signed during the second quarter, up from 1.9 million square feet of leases signed in the first quarter of 2008. Tenant retention was 74.4% for the second quarter of 2008 and 73.3% year to date. Realized rent growth on signed leases for which there was a prior tenant averaged 12.7% on a GAAP basis and 5.4% on a cash basis in the second quarter of 2008.

Bad debt expense totaled $0.2 million in the second quarter of 2008, compared to $0.6 million last quarter and $0.6 million in the second quarter of 2007.

Disposition and Development Activity

Consistent with its 2008 business plan, DCT Industrial Trust did not acquire any buildings and disposed of four assets totaling 1.2 million square feet for a combined sales price of approximately $71.1 million during the second quarter of 2008. Following the end of the second quarter, DCT disposed of four industrial buildings totaling 199,000 square feet for a combined sales price of approximately $11.8 million, bringing year to date sales to more than $89 million.

As of June 30, 2008, DCT Industrial Trust had 8.9 million square feet under development.

'While we completed the lease-up of two development projects in Chicago and Southern California and two projects in Mexico, we have experienced a slowdown in the leasing of some of our other development assets,' said Jim Cochran, President and Chief Investment Officer of DCT Industrial Trust. 'Given our caution for the rest of the year, we have decided to move the stabilization dates for several projects from 2008 to 2009.'

Financing Activity

During the second quarter, DCT Industrial Trust closed a two-year $300 million senior unsecured term loan that can be extended for one year at the Company's option. The first $100 million was drawn on June 9, 2008 and used to repay maturing unsecured notes. The remaining $200 million can be funded anytime up to December 31, 2008, at DCT's discretion. DCT Industrial Trust has entered into a swap to fix LIBOR on the initial funding for two years. The loan currently bears interest at LIBOR plus 150 basis points, based on the Company's current leverage, bringing the effective rate to 4.73% per annum.

Balance Sheet

DCT Industrial's balance sheet remains strong, with consolidated debt to book value of total assets (before depreciation and amortization) of 37.1% as of June 30, 2008, compared to 37.4% as of December 31, 2007. The Company's fixed charge coverage for the second quarter of 2008 was 3.2 times. Excluding $1.4 million of income related to forward-starting interest rate swaps, the fixed charge coverage was 3.0 times.

Dividend

DCT Industrial Trust's Board of Directors has declared a $0.16 per share quarterly cash dividend, payable on October 17, 2008, to stockholders of record as of October 6, 2008.

Guidance

DCT Industrial has lowered its 2008 guidance to FFO per diluted share of $0.60 to $0.66 and net income of $0.09 to $0.15 per diluted share, primarily due to a decrease in expectations for development gains.

Conference Call Information

DCT Industrial Trust will host a conference call to discuss second quarter results and its recent business activities on Tuesday, August 5, 2008 at 12:00 PM Eastern. Stockholders and interested parties may listen to a live broadcast of the conference call by dialing (800) 860-2442 or (412) 858-4600. A telephone replay will be available for five days following the call by dialing (877) 344-7529 or (412) 317-0088 and entering the passcode 420896. A live webcast and replay of the conference call will be available on the investor relations page of DCT's website at http://www.dctindustrial.com.

Supplemental information will be available in the Investor Relations section of the Company's website at http://www.dctindustrial.com or by e-mail request at investorrelations@dctindustrial.com. Interested parties may also obtain supplemental information from the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov.

About DCT Industrial Trust

DCT Industrial Trust 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, 2008, the Company owned, managed or had under development 75.7 million square feet of assets leased to approximately 850 customers, including 16.9 million square feet managed on behalf of three institutional joint venture partners. Additional information is available at http://www.dctindustrial.com.

                  DCT INDUSTRIAL TRUST INC.