Reuters - China Overseas Land & Investment Ltd, the country's largest property developer by market value, posted a 3 percent rise in third-quarter operating profit, helped by strategic pricing in higher tier cities to counter tightening measures.

The state-backed company, which focuses on mid to high-end residential properties, posted an operating profit of HK$6.35 billion ($819 million) in the July-to-September period, up from HK$6.15 billion a year earlier, it said in a filing on the Hong Kong stock exchange on Tuesday.

Many analysts contacted by Reuters said they did not have estimates for third-quarter or nine-month results for China Overseas, which competes with developers such as China Vanke Co Ltd and Evergrande Real Estate Group Ltd.

China's property prices have been rising sharply over the past few years, prompting authorities to unveil more tightening measures to cool the market.

China Overseas Land earlier this month reported contract sales of HK$111.8 billion in the first nine months of the year, or 93 percent of its 2013 target of HK$120 billion. Contract sales are recorded when buyers purchase a property and are an indication of developers' future revenues.

Shares of China Overseas Land fell 0.8 percent ahead of the results on Tuesday morning, underperforming the Hang Seng Index's 0.5 percent loss.