A few of our holdings struggled in the third quarter. Real estate specialist Jones Lang LaSalle Inc. (JLL) fell -4.21% due to an earnings miss. Revenues came in near expectations, at $989 million—an increase of 7% year-over-year—versus the consensus of $995 million. Management suggested the bulk of the earnings miss came from higher-than-expected expenses. Adding to the Wall Street discontent was a lower forecast for the Americas in investment sales activity: growth of 10% to 15% rather than 15% to 20%. We see all these as minor, short-term issues and think the long-term picture is bright. People will always buy and sell corporate real estate, and the trend toward outsourcing real estate management is straightforward and rational. We plan to remain patient.
From John Rogers' Ariel Funds third quarter 2013 commentary.
From John Rogers' Ariel Funds third quarter 2013 commentary.
