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The Honolulu Advertiser
Posted on: Tuesday, May 8, 2007

Land sales give Maui Land & Pineapple earnings a boost

Advertiser Staff

Maui Land & Pineapple Co. Inc.'s first-quarter earnings were bolstered by higher land sales in the firm's community development segment.

FIRST QUARTER

Revenue: $61 million, up from $59 million a year ago

Net income: $15.7 million, up from $13.8 million a year ago

Earnings per share: $2.12 a share, vs. $1.90 a share a year ago

Operating profit: $25.8 million vs. $21.3 million a year ago

REASONS

  • The community development segment reported an operating profit of $29.1 million for 2007's first quarter, vs. $23.4 million in the year-ago period.

  • The resort segment had an operating loss of $904,000 for the first quarter of 2007 compared with a year-ago operating profit of $430,000.

  • The agriculture segment posted an operating loss of $2.4 million, compared with an operating loss of $2.3 million for the first quarter of 2006.

    WHAT THEY ARE SAYING

    "Results largely reflect the impact of obtaining an ownership interest in the Ritz-Carlton Kapalua hotel. The fee conversion of the land underlying the hotel generated $24.8 million in pretax gains which we recognized in the quarter."

    David Cole
    Chairman, president and chief executive of Maui Land & Pineapple

    WHAT'S NEXT

    Maui Land & Pine, the state's last producer of canned pineapple, plans to end its fruit-canning operations on June 30.

    The move will eliminate 120 jobs, or 27 percent of the company's workforce, although affected workers will be offered jobs in other divisions of the company.

    The company plans to concentrate on selling fresh fruit in an effort to develop a profitable business model for its pineapple subsidiary.