SINGAPORE (Oct 20): The manager of CapitaLand Mall Trust (CMT) has announced a 3Q17 distribution per unit (DPU) of 2.78 cents, unchanged from a year ago.
For the three months to Sept, gross revenue declined 0.2% to $169.4 million from $169.7 million in 3Q16, mainly due to lower rental achieved for Bedok Mall, Plaza Singapura and Junction 8.
But property operating expenses decreased 4.2% to $48 million from $50.2 million last year, mainly due to lower property tax and utilities expenses.
Net property income therefore increased 1.6% to $121.4 million from $119.5 million while distributable income inched up 0.3% to $98.7 million.
As at Sept 30, CMT’s average cost of debt was 3.2% and aggregate leverage was 34.7%.
Based on CMT’s Friday closing price of $2.04 per unit, the annualised distribution yield for 3Q17 was 5.41%.
Unitholders can expect to receive their DPU for 3Q17 on Nov 29.
Tony Tan, CEO of CapitaLand Mall Trust Management, says, “During the quarter, CMT announced the divestment of its units in Victory SR Trust, which owns the serviced residence component of Funan at an agreed land value of $90.5 million. The divestment serves to lower CMT’s development risks, reduce funding requirements and improve the return on investment for Funan’s redevelopment. We are glad to have found a strong and reliable partner in Ascott to jointly transform Funan into a new paradigm for livework-play in Singapore.”
