Market Watch: JOE Announces New COO

The St. Joe Company (NYSE: JOE) has appointed veteran real estate executive Park Brady to be its chief operating officer. Brady will report to the  executive committee of the company’s board of directors, which includes Chairman Bruce Berkowitz and Interim CEO Hugh Durden.

Brady’s appointment is the latest in a series of steps taken since the late February resignation of President and CEO Britt Greene.

Also stepping down were board members Michael Ainslie, John Lord, and Walter  Revell. Among the new directors proposed by the company’s largest shareholder, The Fairholme Fund, were Berkowitz, Durden, and former Florida Governor Charles J. Crist.

The St. Joe Company is one of Florida’s largest real estate development companies and Northwest Florida’s largest private landowner with approximately 576,000 acres of land, concentrated primarily between Tallahassee and Destin.

JOE Reports 3Q Loss

Florida’s largest private landowner, The St. Joe Company, reported a third quarter net loss of $19.2 million (21 cents a share) on Tuesday. JOE’s President and CEO Britt Greene cited the global financial crisis and the dowturn in the Florida. Now for the good news. Read more

JOE Nixes $130 Million Sale

Earlier today Florida’s largest private landowner, The St. Joe Company, announced the cancellation of a major transaction: 67,365 acres for more than $130 million ($1,929 per acre). Here is the press release from the corporate website.

The St. Joe Company (NYSE: JOE) today said that the previously announced contract for the sale of 67,365 acres of non-strategic rural conservation land in Liberty, Jefferson, Gulf, and Franklin Counties has been terminated.  The sale was to have closed in two transactions for a total price of $130.4 million, the first transaction in the fourth quarter of this year and the other in the second quarter of 2009.

“We are now able to return these parcels to the market,” said JOE’s president and CEO Britt Greene.  “While this particular buyer had sought large contiguous conservation acreage, we are now able to offer this acreage in smaller parcels to other interested buyers. With no near-term need for the proceeds, we plan to continue our orderly disposition of these non-strategic assets.”

“We are continuing to execute our strategic plan, while keeping JOE lean and efficient to better withstand these difficult market conditions,” said Greene. “With our strong balance sheet and cash position, we are prepared to withstand this prolonged downturn and will continue to prudently manage our inventory and assets to preserve long-term shareholder value.”