ARLINGTON, Va. (AP) _ AvalonBay Communities Inc. (AVB) on Wednesday reported a key measure of profitability in its first quarter. The results did not meet Wall Street expectations.

The real estate investment trust, based in Arlington, Virginia, said it had funds from operations of $335.8 million, or $2.39 per share, in the period.

The average estimate of eight analysts surveyed by Zacks Investment Research was for funds from operations of $2.40 per share.

Funds from operations is a closely watched measure in the REIT industry. It takes net income and adds back items such as depreciation and amortization.

The company said it had net income of $168 million, or $1.19 per share.

The apartment building owner posted revenue of $601.7 million in the period, which also fell short of Street forecasts. Six analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $601.9 million.

The company's shares have decreased 25% since the beginning of the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index has declined 12%. In the final minutes of trading on Wednesday, shares hit $156.80, a decrease of 22% in the last 12 months.

This story was generated by Automated Insights (http://automatedinsights.com/ap) using data from Zacks Investment Research. Access a Zacks stock report on AVB at https://www.zacks.com/ap/AVB

Automated Insights, source Associated Press News