July 31 (Reuters) - Federal Realty Investment Trust ( FRT )

on Friday raised its annual core profit forecast after

posting better-than-expected second-quarter results on strong

leasing demand and rent growth across its shopping-center

portfolio.

The Maryland-based real estate investment trust, which owns

shopping centers and mixed-use properties leased to tenants

including Trader Joe's, Whole Foods and Best Buy, has benefited

from demand for space in densely populated, high-income

metropolitan markets.

* The company expects annual core funds from operations, a

key performance measure for REITs, to be between $7.48 and $7.56

per share, compared with its prior forecast of $7.46 to $7.55

per share.

* Core funds from operations rose 6.8% to $1.88 per diluted

share in the quarter ended June 30 from $1.76 a year earlier.

* Federal Realty's quarterly revenue rose to $335.7 million,

from $311.5 million a year ago.

* Revenue from rental income rose 7.7% to $325.9 million

during the quarter.

* Portfolio occupancy, or percentage of rentable space

occupied by tenants, was 93.8% as of June 30, up 20 basis points

from a year earlier, while its leased rate increased 70 basis

points to 96.1%

(Reporting by Krisha Bhatt in Bengaluru)