SINGAPORE (April 26): The trustee-manager of Ascendas India Trust (a-iTrust) has declared a FY16/17 distribution per unit (DPU) of 5.69 cents for the full year ended March 31 as compared to a year ago on record revenues.
The India-based operator of business property saw total property income for the full year grow by 12% to INR7.6 billion ($165.2 million), mainly due to incremental property income of INR564 million from aVance 3, CyberVale 3, Victor at ITPB, and BlueRidge 2 – in addition to positive rental reversions over the year.
In SGD terms, total property income grew 9% to $156.7 million as the Singapore dollar appreciated by 3% against the INR over the same period last year.
Total property expenses increased by 7% INR2.5 billion, due mainly to additional expenses arising from the addition of aVance 3, CyberVale 3, Victor and BlueRidge 2 to the trust’s portfolio over the course of last three years.
As a result, net property income for FY16/17 grew by 14% to INR5 billion and by 11% to $104.2 million in SGD terms.
Committed portfolio occupancy was at 98% as at March 31, excluding BlueRidge 2 which was acquired in February 2017, while the trust’s gearing ratio stood at 29%.
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The a-iTrust’s net asset value (NAV) per unit grew 17% to 81 cents as compared to that of March 31 last year. Excluding deferred tax liabilities arising from fair value adjustments on properties, the adjusted NAV per unit was $1.05.
“This strong set of results was supported by incremental income from new acquisitions and development, and positive rental reversions… Looking ahead, the trust has a healthy development and acquisition pipeline to scale up further,” comments Sanjeev Dasgupta, CEO of the trustee-manager, on the trust’s latest set of financial results.
“Besides investing in quality IT parks, we are seeking opportunities to expand into the fast-growing logistics sector by acquiring investment-grade warehouses. The Indian logistics sector is supported by healthy growth in the Indian economy and other favourable macro factors, including Goods and Services Tax reform and rapid growth in e-commerce. In addition to providing diversification of asset class to our existing portfolio, the logistics sector would provide a new avenue of growth for the trust,” he adds.
Units of a-iTrust closed 1 cent higher at $1.14 on Wednesday.
