Emaar Properties, posted a 17% drop in quarterly profit, after a one-off asset sale boosted profit a year earlier, but reported record sales of properties in the first half of the year.
Emaar recorded a net profit of 903 million dirhams ($246 million) in the period ended June 30, down from 1.09 billion dirhams a year earlier.
Arqaam Capital had projected 820 million net profit for Emaar Properties.
Last year’s profit was boosted by the sale of Emaar’s district cooling business.
Emaar said it achieved a record $4.6 billion in property sales in the first half of the year, up from $1.4 billion in the same period a year earlier.
It attributed it to sale of under-construction projects and successful launch of projects in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and overseas.
Rating agency S&P said recently the residential real estate market in Dubai has bottomed out and now offers attractive opportunities for developers, especially for premium properties.
Emaar is behind many of Dubai’s major developments, including mega shopping centre Dubai Mall and the surrounding residential area.
It is 29.2% owned by state investment fund Investment Corporation of Dubai.