I used to be a unit-holder of Sabana REIT back in 2011. I recalled its unit price dropped after IPO (@ S$1.05 per unit) and then I started accumulating units for investment. Anyway, I held onto Sabana REIT for a short time due to its high dividend yield after the decline in price post IPO. But once I observed that the previous management seems to be having trouble getting new tenants and a potential cut-back in dividends, I got extremely worried and exited towards the end of 2012. But if one has been holding on to Sabana REIT since IPO, the total returns if inclusive of dividends is actually just a loss of less than 10% albeit the unit price dropping by more than half- so still not too bad. Since the end of March'21, I have started taking up a small investment stake into Sabana REIT despit

Technical Analysis of FTSE ST REIT Index (FSTAS8670) FTSE ST Real Estate Investment Trusts (FTSE ST REIT Index) increased from 826.65 to 859.68 (+3.99%) compared to last month update. Currently the Singapore REIT index is still trading with a range between 816 and 874. As for now, Short term direction: Sideway. Immediate Support at 816, followed by 775. Immediate Resistance at 874. Previous chart on FTSE ST REIT index can be found in the last post Singapore REIT Fundamental Comparison Table on Mar 4, 2021. Fundamental Analysis of 40 Singapore REITs The following is the compilation of 40 Singapore REITs with colour coding of the Distribution Yield, Gearing Ratio and Price to NAV Ratio. Note 1: The Financial Ratio are based on past data and there are lagging indicators. Note 2: This REI

One year has passed since Covid escalated and markets hit rock bottom in March 2020.  How did my trades perform and what did I learn? In March 2020 I made 27 trades across 10 counters. Today I got inspired by fellow investing blogger My 15 Hour Work Week who revisited all his trades from the worst time of the Covid market turmoil last year. Following Mr. 15HWW’s example, here is what I did… March 4, 2020 Stocks are selling off, what a bargain! Bought: 100 shares of DBS for SGD 23.9 each for a total of SGD 2,390 Bought: 1,100 shares of SINGTEL for SGD 2.99 each for a total of SGD 3,289 March 10, 2020 Is this the begin of a major sell off? STI ETF below SGD 3, so cheap! Bought: 900 shares of STI ETF for SGD 2.85 each for a total of SGD 2,565 Financial Times cover for March 10 l

Last week, I updated an article about the top 10 Singapore REITs that would have made you money if you invested from their IPOs. Out of the 19 S-REITs that have been listed for at least 10 years, 16 of them gave a positive overall return for investors. As the pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we live, the retail, office and hospitality sectors have been negatively affected. A lot of REITs listed in Malaysia with a bulk of their assets concentrated in retail have not done well. On the other hand, industrial REITs such as Axis REIT and Atrium REIT have recovered or exceeded their pre-pandemic levels. In this article, we will not only look at the short-term performance of Malaysia REITs but also their long-term performance to get a more accurate picture as the stock market

The year 2020 was full of surprises. COVID-19 was one of them. It is depressing to describe the ordeal that many of us went through over the past year but the pandemic has fundamentally changed the way we live. Most of us are still working from home by default which makes office assets look redundant. Tourists are a rare sight nowadays as most international flights are still grounded and hotels are struggling to fill their rooms. City malls are also scrambling to bring shopper traffic back as they used to depend on office workers and tourists for footfall in the past. On the other hand, industrial properties like logistics and data centre assets have performed really well in the post-pandemic world. More people are shopping online and it has naturally led to increased demand for war

1. SPH Reit  --  13th Jan 2021  (Business Update)2. First Reit  --  14th Jan 20213. CICT  --  21st Jan 20214. Frasers Cpt Trust  --  21st Jan 2021  (Business Update)5. SGX  --  22nd Jan 20216. Kep Reit  --  25th Jan 20217. Mapletreelog Trust  --  25th Jan 20218. Parkway Life Reit  --  25th Jan 20219. Kep DC Reit  --  26th Jan 202110. Suntec Reit  --  26th Jan 202111. Kep Pac Oak US Reit  --  27th Jan 202112. Kep Infra Trust  --  27th Jan 202113. Ascott Reit  --  27th Jan 202114. MapletreeCom Trust  --  27th Jan 2021  (Business Update)15. Kep Corp  --  28th Jan 202116. Starhill Global Reit  --  28th Jan 202117. MNACT&n

It is the new year already, and in another 3 weeks' time, REITs will start to report their financial performance. For REITs with December as their Financial Year-end, they will also have to update their property valuations. With COVID-19 having caused significant changes to the way people live, work and shop, one of the key risks to REITs during this period is whether property values will decline significantly. This could lead to breaches in Aggregate Leverage limits, leading to rights issues at unfavourable prices.One of the REITs that caught my attention is Suntec Reit. It owns offices, retail spaces and part of the convention centre in Suntec City. It also owns part of One Raffles Quay, Marina Bay Financial Centre and 9 Penang Road (formerly known as Park Mall). In recent years, it has

The financial reporting period for REITs has almost come to a close. One of my biggest worries in the COVID-19 fallout is the devaluation of assets held by REITs, which could lead to their aggregate leverage ratios rising above the regulatory limit and needing to carry out massive rights issues. So far, this worry has not materialised. The 2 REITs that had to carry out massive rights issues are Lippo Malls and First Reit, both of which are related to financial difficulties at their sponsors, Lippo Karawaci. Among the various REIT asset classes, hospitality trusts (HTs) are at most risks because international tourism has largely been decimated by border closures to control the spread of COVID-19. Both occupancy and room rates took a dive, resulting in significantly reduced revenue. Anc

2020 was a precarious year for property owners. Globally, travel has grinded to a halt, impacting hospitality properties. Even Retail, office and industrial properties have been affected to varying degrees, given the strict COVID-19 management measures. 2020 also feels like the harbinger of the new normal – accelerating trends to an extreme level. We already knew work-from-home was on the rise, online shopping growth was outpacing sales in brick-and-mortar stores, food delivery services were taking over F&B outlets and more. For REIT owners, distribution income was affected due to various countries implementing some form of cost sharing initiatives as shutdowns and “circuit breakers” we enforced. More than that, REIT investors also have to consider the longer term impacts of COVI

The past week we have seen the likes of GameStop, AMC, KOSS, and a few others dominating the news headline across the market playing out of the short squeeze thesis.I must say that this has been one of my main sources of entertainment (I believe the same too for others) in the past week, reading across different sources and scrolling multiple forums, understanding what are others are doing and thinking.The thesis of the Reddit army holding the line in order to cause a short squeeze and not allowing the short sellers to cover back their positions sounds strong enough and valid. Unfortunately, we are in a game of our ownself look after ownself and when there is a group of FOMO people that starts to go in at the later part of the party, there can only be one ending outcome.Alright, I know it'

Technical Analysis of FTSE ST REIT Index (FSTAS8670) FTSE ST Real Estate Investment Trusts (FTSE ST REIT Index) increased from 854.19 to 877.59 (+2.74%) compared to last month update. Currently the Singapore REIT index has started an uptrend after broke the resistance of about 852 and 874. As for now, Short term direction: Up trend. (All 20D, 50D and 200D SMA have started trending up) Immediate Support at 874 (Resistance turned Support) Immediate Resistance at 900, followed by 940. Previous chart on FTSE ST REIT index can be found in the last post Singapore REIT Fundamental Comparison Table on Dec 20, 2020. Fundamental Analysis of 40 Singapore REITs The following is the compilation of 40 Singapore REITs with colour coding of the Distribution Yield, Gearing Ratio and Price to NAV Ratio.

Biden’s peaceful inauguration brought some support; STI climbed above 3,000 on Thursday but fell back on Friday; Wall St’s fall on Friday attributed to Fauci warning about new virus strains; Singapore govt keeping close eye on property market; Takeover offer for Sunningdale Tech was raised; CDL expects material impairment loss from controversial Sincere investment in China; Oceanus was in play, drawing SGX query Biden assumes US presidency peacefully, market hopes for stimulus soon There was a sense of relief last week that the inauguration of new US President Joe Biden passed without any problems. This helped bolster sentiment on Wall Street, where the mood remained positive that the incoming administration will soon put into placed a large stimulus package. However, as the week pr

This was a huge surprise. Despite all related parties such as the Lippo Group abstaining from voting, over 90% of unit-holders voted in favour of the restructuring deal. Also, the rights issue in resolution 2 enjoy overwhelming support of over 90%. Hence the rights issue exercise will proceed immediately to complete the new operating model for First REIT. With all unit-holders demonstrating such strong support and being one heart one mind with Lippo Karawaci, there is a high likelihood things will go well from this point onwards especially in view that Indonesia has also started its vaccination programme and the Indonesian economy is slowly mending itself.

The massive sell-down in Mar brought many REITs to rare, multi-year lows. This re-ignited my interest in REITs, as I have been out of them for many years due to their increasing debt levels and decreasing yields. However, I passed up the opportunity while I analysed what could be the impact of COVID-19 on REITs. Despite the massive government interventions, things do not look good for retail and F&B companies. And when tenants struggle, their landlords will also suffer. In this blog post, I will examine the potential impact of COVID-19 on 2 retail companies and 2 F&B companies.Before we begin, it is good to recap what are the measures the government has taken to cushion the impact on retail and F&B companies. Wage SupportThrough 4 extraordinary budgets, the government will

On 28 Dec 2020, First Reit dropped a bombshell by announcing a major rights issue at a heavily discounted price. This caused the share price to dropped significantly. The main reason is the proposed restructuring of master leases that First Reit have with Lippo Karawaci (LPKR) and Metropolis Propertindo Utama (MPU). First Reit leases hospitals to LPKR and MPU which in turn lease them to Siloam International Hospitals. The proposed lease restructuring would reduce the Base Rent of LPKR-leased hospitals from SGD80.9 mil to SGD50.9 mil and that of MPU-leased hospitals from SGD11.3 mil to SGD5.8 mil. These represent a reduction of 37% and 49% respectively.  Not only that, the rents will be paid in Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) instead of Singapore Dollar (SGD) in future. As a result of the redu

First Reit had been a good investment for me over the years. It had provided good distributions regularly and also some capital gains. The reason I sold it away was because its Debt-to-Equity ratio had exceeded my comfort zone of 50% or less. For investments that I do not have time to monitor regularly, it is best that their debts are low in the first place. Last year, First Reit's share price had been dropping since the COVID-19 outbreak and the announcement by its sponsor, Lippo Karawaci (LPKR), to restructure the master leases of the hospitals that it lease from First Reit. The low share price attracted my attention, but when First Reit announced that the rents would be paid in Indonesian Rupiah (IDR) instead of Singapore Dollars (SGD) in future, I was no l

Sign up & unlock articles! What a perfect storm for First Reit share price! In December 2018, I wrote an article “Dark chapter for high-flying First REIT”. In that article, I highlighted the two key risks for First Reit – over-reliance on its Sponsor (PT Lippo Karawaci, LPKR) for rental income and currency exchange risks. Indeed, my worst fear came true when First Reit share price blew up spectacularly in 2020. Should investors run for their lives or fight to the very end? Make no mistake, COVID-19 pandemic should not be seen as the attributing factor for the collapse of First Reit share price. Troubles actually began to brew way back in 2018 when LPKR embarked on the massive Meikarta real estate development in Indonesia. Costing USD21 billion, this is the largest project t

Portfolio as of 15 Jan 2021.Bought Valuetronics at $0.595 in late December. There has recent trend of privatisations of contract manufacturers, including Sunningdale, Hi-P and CEI Ltd, and I think that the sector deserves more attention. At the moment, I do not think Valuetronics represents an immediate takeover target, as insiders only own c.25% of the outstanding shares, as compared to Hi-P, where the insiders owned 83.% of the company when they made the privatisation offer. However, with a high net cash balance, strong track record of profitability, expansion plans in Vietnam and an improving macro situation with Biden expected to de-escalate US-China trade tensions, I believe that it may still represent an attractive company which may draw the interest of private equity firms, as the c

First published in Business Times on 15 January 2021 ON JAN 19, unit holders of healthcare real estate investment trust First Reit, whose assets are mainly hospitals in Indonesia, will attend an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) at which two resolutions have been tabled. Unitholders should note that voting closes on Jan 16. Unitholders should quickly familiarise themselves with what is on the table in order to make an informed decision. Two parties are in financial difficulties. One is First Reit’s former parent, Lippo Karawaci (LK). Its distress has been brought on partly by the Covid-19 pandemic, partly by a soft Indonesian property market, and partly by a weak rupiah – it collects rent in rupiah but pays First Reit in Singapore dollars. LK has been in a negative cash flow

Technical Analysis of FTSE ST REIT Index (FSTAS8670) FTSE ST Real Estate Investment Trusts (FTSE ST REIT Index) increased from 828.26  to 854.19 (+3.13%) compared to last month update. Currently the REIT index is testing the resistance of about 852 of a sideway consolidation range. As for now, Short term direction: Sideway, until breakout of the resistance (starts up trend) or breakdown of the support (starts down trend). Immediate Support at 819 Immediate Resistance at 852, followed by 874. Previous chart on FTSE ST REIT index can be found in the last post Singapore REIT Fundamental Comparison Table on Nov 22, 2020. Fundamental Analysis of 40 Singapore REITs The following is the compilation of 40 REITs in Singapore with colour coding of the Distribution Yield, Gearing Ratio and Pric