W. P. Carey Announces Fourth Quarter and Year-End 2008 Financial Results

W. P. Carey Q4 and Year-End Financials

New York, NY – February 26, 2009 – Investment firm W. P. Carey & Co. LLC (NYSE: WPC) today reported financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2008. The Company reported increases of 33 percent and six percent in cash flow from operations and adjusted cash flow from operating activities, respectively, for 2008, while net income was essentially unchanged.

Commenting on the Company’s results, Wm. Polk Carey, Founder and Chairman, stated, “In determining distributions to shareholders, the Company's Board of Directors views adjusted cash flow from operating activities as a critical metric. Consequently, we are pleased to report an increase in this metric over the prior year. Combined with the continued strength of our balance sheet, this increase is a testament to the established investment and asset management processes that are at the core of our disciplined risk management approach and long term investment philosophy.”

QUARTERLY AND YEAR-END RESULTS

• Total revenues net of reimbursed expenses for the fourth quarter of 2008 were $52.9 million, compared to $51.2 million for the fourth quarter of 2007. Total revenues net of reimbursed expenses for 2008 were $202.7 million, compared to $249.4 million for 2007. Reimbursed expenses are excluded from total revenues because they have no impact on net income.
• Net income for the fourth quarter of 2008 was $21.9 million, compared to $6 million for the fourth quarter of 2007. Net income for 2008 was $78 million, compared to $79.3 million in 2007.
• Funds from operations (FFO) for the fourth quarter of 2008, as per the attached table, were $33.8 million or $0.84 per diluted share, compared to $2.9 million or $0.07 per diluted share for the comparable period in 2007. FFO for 2008 was $124.5 million or $3.09 per diluted share, compared to $133.3 million or $3.34 per diluted share for 2007.

SUPPLEMENTAL PERFORMANCE METRICS

• For the year ended December 31, 2008, adjusted cash flow from operating activities increased 6% to $89.4 million from $84.2 million in 2007.
• FFO from our real estate ownership segment in the fourth quarter of 2008 increased to $22.4 million or $0.56 per diluted share, compared to $17.2 million or $0.43 per diluted share in the fourth quarter of 2007. For 2008, FFO from this segment increased to $75.3 million or $1.87 per diluted share from $64.1 million or $1.61 per diluted share during 2007.
• Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) from our investment management segment totaled $13.1 million this quarter or $0.32 per diluted share, compared with EBITDA in the fourth quarter of 2007 of $(3.9) million or $(0.10) per diluted share. EBITDA for this segment in 2008 was $61.8 million or $1.54 per diluted share, compared to $91.1 million or $2.29 per share diluted for 2007.
• Further information concerning these non-GAAP supplemental performance metrics is presented in the accompanying tables. These supplemental metrics have been adjusted on the accompanying comparability table to show how those measures would compare period-to-period after adjustment for certain events that affected 2007 and 2006 results.

ASSETS UNDER MANAGEMENT

• As of December 31, 2008, the occupancy rate of our 17 million square foot owned portfolio was approximately 94%. In addition, for the 92 million square feet owned by the CPA^® REITs, the occupancy rate was approximately 99%.
• In July 2008, we opened an office in Amsterdam to establish a European base for the management of the CPA^® REITs’ growing portfolio of international assets.

INVESTMENT AND FUNDRAISING ACTIVITY

• In 2008, we structured investments on behalf of our CPA^® REITs totaling approximately $457 million, as compared to $1.1 billion in 2007, which included the $446 million Hellweg Die Profi-Baumärkte GmbH & Co. KG investment. Approximately 46% of the 2008 investments were international transactions.
• Through February 23, 2009, we have raised approximately $380 million for CPA^®:17 – Global’s initial public offering.
  

DISTRIBUTIONS AND SHARE REPURCHASE

• The Board of Directors has raised the quarterly cash distribution to $0.496 per share for the first quarter of 2009. The distribution is payable on April 15, 2009 to shareholders of record as of March 31, 2009. This is our 32^nd consecutive quarterly dividend increase.
• In December 2008, our Board approved a share repurchase program of up to $10 million of our outstanding stock from December 16, 2008 through March 4, 2009, or the date the maximum is reached, if earlier. Through December 31, 2008, we repurchased shares totaling $2 million under this program.

UPCOMING EVENTS

• Gordon F. DuGan, President and CEO, will participate as a panelist in the “Town Hall Meeting: The Net Lease Market Today & Tomorrow” at the 7^th annual RealShare Net Lease conference. The event will be held on April 29, 2009 at the Marriott Marquis in New York.

CONFERENCE CALL & WEBCAST

Please call at least 10 minutes prior to call to register.

Date: Thursday, February 26, 2009, 11:00 AM (ET)

Call-in Number: 1-877-407-0782

(International) +1-201-689-8567

Webcast: www.wpcarey.com/earnings

Podcast: www.wpcarey.com/podcast

Available after 2:00 PM (ET)

Replay Number: 1-877-660-6853

(International) +1-201-612-7415

Replay Access Codes: Account # 286 and Conference ID # 311396. Please note that both access codes are required for playback. Replay Available until March 12, 2009 at midnight ET.

W. P. Carey & Co. LLC
W. P. Carey & Co. LLC is an investment management company that provides long-term sale-leaseback and build-to-suit financing for companies worldwide and manages a global investment portfolio worth approximately $10 billion. Publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange (WPC), W. P. Carey and its CPA^® series of income-generating, non-traded REITs help companies and private equity firms unlock capital tied up in real estate assets. The W. P. Carey Group’s investments are highly diversified, comprising contractual agreements with approximately 300 long-term corporate obligors spanning 28 industries and 14 countries. http://www.wpcarey.com

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This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Federal securities laws. A number of factors could cause the Company's actual results, performance or achievement to differ materially from those anticipated. Among those risks, trends and uncertainties are the general economic climate; the supply of and demand for office and industrial properties; interest rate levels; the availability of financing; and other risks associated with the acquisition and ownership of properties, including risks that the tenants will not pay rent, or that costs may be greater than anticipated. For further information on factors that could impact the Company, reference is made to the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.