SINGAPORE (Oct 25): The manager of Mapletree Commercial Trust (MCT) announced 2Q17/18 DPU increased 9.3% to 2.24 cents from 2.05 cents the previous year.
Gross revenue for the second quarter ended September jumped 21.7% to $107.2 million compared to $88.1 million a year ago.
Mapletree Commercial Trust Management says this was mainly due to the full quarter contribution from MBC I in 2Q17/18 as it was acquired on Aug 25, 2016 and higher contribution from VivoCity, but was offset by lower contribution from PSA Building and Mapletree Anson.
Revenue for Vivocity for 2Q17/18 stood at $51.4 million, $1.7 million higher than revenue from the previous year of $49.8 million and representing 48.0% of the trust’s total revenue.
The increase in revenue was driven mainly by higher rental income from new and renewed leases, achieved together with the completed asset enhancement initiatives on Basement 2, Level 1 and Level 3, as well as the effects of the step-up rents in existing leases.
Meanwhile, revenue for PSA Building and Mapletree Anson were $0.5 million and $0.3 million lower compared to 2Q16/17 due to lower occupancy.
Property operating expenses for 2Q17/18 was 15.9% higher at $22.8 million compared to $19.7 million last year, largely due to the full quarter effect of MBC I.
Hence, net property income for 2Q17/18 increased by 23.4% to $84.4 million from $68.4 million the same period last year.
Overall portfolio NPI for 2Q17/18 grew 23.4%, with a higher 78.7% NPI margin.
As at Sept 30, the committed occupancy of the trust’s overall portfolio was 98.7%.
Sharon Lim, CEO of the manager says, “Last quarter, we announced plans to add a public library on Level 3 of VivoCity to strengthen its positioning as a destination mall. This asset enhancement initiative is both exciting and meaningful for us. Initial works, which will start in 3Q FY17/18, include extending Basement 1 by adding over 24,000 square feet of contiguous retail space, and enhancing connectivity with an additional escalator node. We target to complete the AEI in phases by 3Q FY18/19.”
On the outlook, MCT will focus on its proactive leasing efforts and focus on tenant retention to maintain overall portfolio stability.
The 2Q17/18 DPU will be paid out on Nov 29.
Units in MCT closed at $1.59 on Wednesday
