Aug 6 (Reuters) - Realty Income O.N raised the lower end of its annual adjusted funds from operations (FFO) forecast on Wednesday, as the company expects improving demand for its properties despite an uncertain macroeconomic backdrop.

The real estate investment trust now expects adjusted FFO for 2025 in the range of $4.24 to $4.28 per share, up from its prior forecast of $4.22 to $4.28 per share.

"As demand for durable income solutions accelerates amidst a growing retiree demographic, and as corporations increasingly seek to unlock capital from real estate, we believe our model is well-positioned to thrive," CEO Sumit Roy said.

Realty Income, which recently completed a $9.3 billion merger with Spirit Realty Capital, handles a porfolio of more than 15,600 commercial properties and leases them to over 1,500 clients across the retail, restaurant and gaming industries.

The company stands to benefit from rising rental revenues as demand for its properties increases amid growing competition among retailers. It counts Walgreens WBA.O and Dollar General DG.N among its clients.

The company's same-store rental revenues in the second quarter increased to $1.17 billion, compared with $1.15 billion in the same period a year ago.

Total revenue for the quarter ended June 30 was $1.41 billion, exceeding analysts' average estimate of $1.34 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

The San Diego, California-based company reported adjusted FFO of $1.05 per share for the second quarter, compared to expectations of $1.07 per share.

Shares of Realty Income were marginally higher in extended trading.

(Reporting by Utkarsh Shetti and Anshuman Tripathy in Bengaluru; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi)

((UtkarshUmesh.Shetti@thomsonreuters.com;))